George Weston sells bakery ventures

George Weston Limited has agreed to sell its Weston Foods fresh and frozen bakery businesses, which provide items for private label brands. The assets will be sold to FGF Brands for $1.2 billion.

The fresh and frozen bakery businesses comprised approximately 75% of Weston Foods' 2020 net sales. George Weston plans to commit to selling its remaining ambient businesses — which are comprised of the production of cookies, cones, crackers and wafers, and is actively engaged in that process. The company produces private label products as well as well-known brands like Wonder, ACE Bakery, Country Harvest, D'Italiano, Casa Mendosa, Dave's Killer Bread and Gadoua.

​​"The Weston Foods business has been the foundation for the Weston Group in Canada since its establishment in 1882 and the decision to sell it was a difficult one," said Galen G. Weston, the company's chairman and CEO. "However, we are pleased that the purchaser of the fresh and frozen businesses is FGF, another long-standing family business with a strong presence in bakery and a significant footprint in Canada. With FGF as the new owner, the business will be in good hands."

George Weston announced in March of this year that it decided to sell its bakery segment and to focus on its retail and real estate businesses. The company expects to return the net proceeds from the transaction to shareholders through share repurchases over time.

"We are thrilled to be acquiring the fresh and frozen businesses of Weston Foods, a Canadian company with over 100 years of baking experience," said FGF co-founder Tejus Ajmera. "And we look forward to building on that legacy by investing in people, facilities, and innovation across our entire operations, in collaboration with Weston Foods president Luc Mongeau and his team.”