North Castle Acquires Orchid Island, Further Expands Natural Beverage Base

GREENWICH, Conn.--In a move to further establish its presence in the natural beverage market, North Castle Partners, an investment firm based here, acquired Pierce, Fla.-based Orchid Island Juice Co.

This is the latest in a line of acquisitions to create a "coast-to-coast, branded premium refrigerated juice company." North Castle's first step in implementing this strategy was the acquisition of M.H. Zeigler and Sons Inc. in June 2000, followed by Saratoga Beverage Group Inc., California Day-Fresh Foods/Naked Juice Inc. and Wiman Beverage Company Inc. According to Ellen Marram, a general partner at North Castle and chairman of the company's healthy beverage business, the company plans to capitalize on improvements in the combined companies' distribution, manufacturing and procurement areas.

"Orchid Island has shown tremendous growth and will greatly complement our existing brands and further enhance our leading position in the fresh juice category," Marram said.

"The acquisition of these beverage companies are predicated on the trend of consumers reaching for a healthy and natural alternative to mainstream beverages," said Lou Marinaccio, vice president of North Castle, who added that research has shown that natural beverages are growing at a pace of six times the growth of other beverage companies. "The next move is to leverage the heritage of these brands into one national platform and pursue further acquisitions that [fit into our strategy]."

Orchid Island will continue operations under its current management team, with John Martinelli continuing on as president. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. For additional information, contact Broadgate Consultants Inc. at (212) 232-2226.