The acquisition, however, is contingent on approval from a bankruptcy judge. Robinson’s client's bid amount would be made public in a court hearing on July 27 in Wilmington, Del., Robinson said.
In June, Allen Family Foods filed for bankruptcy protection with a purchase agreement in hand from competitor Mountaire Farms that served as the initial bid. But Mountaire said on July 26 it had "discontinued" its efforts to purchase almost all of Allen's assets.
According to bankruptcy filings, Mountaire's bid going into the auction was for $30 million, with an additional amount for inventory of up to $38 million. Objecting in June to proposed break-up fees, a bankruptcy court trustee put the likely purchase price at $53 million.
Delaware-based Mountaire said after the auction it plans to move forward with its plan to expand operations and add employees — just not by acquiring Allen-owned facilities.
Bob Turley, Allen's chief executive, said Harim representatives indicated they would use all the facilities they plan to acquire as opposed to shutting some down. More than 400 people are employed at Allen’s Talbot County processing plant and about 70 work at its Dorchester County rendering plant.
