Heritage Pasta Group (“Heritage” or the “Company”), a portfolio company of Benford Capital Partners (“Benford Capital” or “BCP”), is pleased to announce the acquisition of Fiore Di Pasta, Inc. (d/b/a “Primavera”). The addition of Primavera further strengthens Heritage’s culinary capabilities and establishes a West Coast footprint to solidify the Company as one of the largest frozen rice, pasta and sauce platforms in North America. Heritage will continue providing exceptional product innovation and service to its broad and diversified customer base across the Foodservice, Retail and Industrial channels.

Founded in 1996 and based in Fresno, CA, Primavera is a family-owned producer of specialty frozen sauces and frozen filled pasta offerings. Primavera has established a reputation for proprietary, custom formulated recipe development and product innovation, and maintains exceptional operational flexibility at its 60K square foot facility. The acquisition gives Heritage a nationwide footprint and complements existing operations at Turri’s Italian Foods (Michigan) and Joseph’s Gourmet Pasta (Massachusetts).

“We are excited to welcome Primavera to the Heritage family,” commented Tim Smith, CEO of Heritage Pasta Group. “Panfilo, Anthony, Marc, and their team have built a terrific business in Fresno, and their expertise in frozen sauces is a natural complement to the Heritage platform. We look forward to continuing to invest in the people, processes and systems to best satisfy the needs of our customers and growing the business alongside the Primavera team.”

DLA Piper served as legal counsel to Heritage on the acquisition and Capital One Food & Beverage provided debt financing.

ABOUT HERITAGE PASTA GROUP

Heritage Pasta Group is a leading U.S. based provider of frozen and ambient pasta, rice, and sauce products, formed by Benford Capital through the combination of Turri’s Italian Foods and Joseph’s Gourmet Pasta. Turri’s, founded in 1949 and located near Detroit, MI, is a leading provider of IQF ready-to-eat pasta, rice, and grains to national restaurant chains, industrial customers, and large CPGs. Joseph’s, founded in 1991 and based near Boston, MA, is a leading manufacturer of frozen pasta, sauces, and appetizers operating from a state-of-the-art facility serving customers across the U.S. and Canada.

ABOUT PRIMAVERA FOODS

Fiore Di Pasta, Inc. (d/b/a “Primavera”) is a family-owned producer of specialty frozen sauces and filled pasta serving food manufacturers and Foodservice customers. Operating from its Fresno facility, Primavera specializes in proprietary IQF sauce and filled pasta production.

ABOUT BENFORD CAPITAL PARTNERS

Founded in 2004, Benford Capital is a Chicago-based private equity firm focused on buying and building leading lower middle market companies in partnership with founders and management. Since inception, Benford Capital has acquired over 75 companies and currently owns 18 platform companies. BCP’s industry areas of focus include Food, Ingredients and Consumer Products, Industrial Technology & Manufacturing, Specialty Services, and Agricultural Products and Services. For more information, please visit www.benfordcapital.com.

Please contact Ben Riefe (ben@benfordcapital.com) or Andrew King (andrew@benfordcapital.com) with any questions or add-on acquisition ideas.