COVINGTON, KY. (Nov. 27, 5:40 p.m. ET) — Waddington North America Inc., a maker of upscale plastic tableware and packaging, has acquired Eco-Products Inc., a supplier of disposable food service products made from plant-based and recycled materials.
This is WNA’s second acquisition of 2012. In August, WNA purchased the drink cup division of Winpak Portion Packaging Inc.
Private equity firm Olympus Partners of Stamford, Conn., acquired WNA last month.
Eco-Products, based in Boulder, Colo., sells disposable packaging — including cups, bowls, lids, containers and utensils — made from post-consumer recycled cardboard and plastic, bio-based polylactic acid resins and other plant-based materials.
“The most important thing…is that we’re going to remain firm in our mission as a green company. We’re going to continue to only make products from post-consumer recycled or renewable resources,” said Wendell Simonson, director of marketing at Eco-Products.
WNA is on-board with that mission. WNA purchased Eco-Products because the company is a leading brand in the green industry, and retaining that lead requires a commitment to only working with green products and materials, Simonson said by phone.
Eco-Products relies on contract manufacturing to make its products. The acquisition is “a nice opportunity for us to leverage some of the manufacturing capabilities that WNA has to offer,” he said.
The acquisition also comes with opportunities for innovation — WNA’s capacity for innovation could really raise the bar in the green products’ arena, he added.
Eco-Products was founded in 1990 by brothers Kent and Steve Savage. When the deal is finalized, the Savages will leave the company, Simonson said.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Eco-Products has 50 employees at its Boulder headquarters.
WNA, based in Covington, Ky., makes and designs a variety of premium rigid plastic disposable products like tableware, drinkware and cutlery for food service and retail packaging markets.
