By Lauren Hirsch and Greg Roumeliotis
Dec 4 (Reuters) - Twinkies maker Hostess Brands LLC is in
talks to acquire Give and Go Prepared Foods Corp, a Canadian
maker of thaw-and-serve sweet baked goods such as Two-Bite
Brownies, according to people familiar with the matter.
The Toronto based-company's owner, OMERS Private Equity,
the buyout arm of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement
System, has been exploring a sale or initial public offering
(IPO) of Give and Go, Reuters reported in September.
Hostess faces competition for Give and Go and there is no
certainty that its offer will prevail, the people said this
week. OMERS hopes a deal could value Give and Go at as much as
$800 million, one of the people added.
The sources asked not to be identified because the matter is
confidential. Give and Go and OMERS did not respond to requests
for comment.
A potential deal would create a confectionary tie up between
the popular Canadian Two-Bite Brownie and the iconic
cream-filled Twinkie. Hostess is one of the largest wholesale
bakers and distributors of breads and snack cakes in the United
States.
Hostess, owned by Apollo Global Management LLC and consumer
industry investor C. Dean Metropoulos, explored its own sale
earlier this year but decided an IPO would be more lucrative,
Reuters reported last summer. The company has not yet gone ahead
with its IPO plans.
Give and Go's brands include the popular Two-Bite miniature
baked treats. It also sells Kimberly's Bakeshoppe cupcakes.
Give and Go provides private-label products to retailers
across Canada, the United States, Mexico, Europe, Australia and
Japan, according to its website.
OMERS bought Give and Go from private equity firm Kilmer
Capital Partners in 2007.