Paine Schwartz Makes Strategic Investment in Humic Growth Solutions

NEW YORK, Sept. 20, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Paine Schwartz Partners, a global leader in sustainable food chain investing, announced that it has completed a second strategic investment through Paine Schwartz Food Chain Fund VI ("Fund VI") in Humic Growth Solutions (the "Company"), a leading developer of humic acid products with a strong manufacturing footprint across the United States and Canada. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Humic Growth Solutions produces humic and fulvic acid products across six manufacturing locations for domestic use and export to more than 40 countries worldwide, with production capacity to meet global agricultural market demand. Humic Growth Solutions is differentiated by its patented, uniquely-water soluble granulation technology, which provides tangible benefits with respect to application flexibility, ease of use and logistics versus competitive powders or liquids, and has a broad pipeline of additional product innovations. The Company is well positioned to continue its leadership in the humic acid market, which has an estimated market opportunity of $500 million to $700 million, growing at 11% to 12% annually, driven by growers and retailers seeking improved productivity, sustainability and soil health.

Paine Schwartz's investment in Humic Growth Solutions builds on the firm's longstanding track record of investing in the upstream segments of Crop Productivity & Sustainability, including its investments in AgBiTech and SNFL.

Kevin Merritt, Founder, CEO and President of Humic Growth Solutions, said, "I am incredibly proud of what we have accomplished in growing this family business into a global company. With Paine Schwartz's investment, we are well positioned to enhance our industry-leading capabilities, continue building on our financial momentum and become an even better partner to our distributors, wholesalers, retailers and end-users. We intend to move full speed ahead as we deliver the highest-quality products and help pave the way toward regenerative, sustainable agriculture."

"We are pleased to make this strategic investment in Humic Growth Solutions, a leader in the growing market for extracted humates, with competitive differentiation and sustainability at its core," says Angelos Dassios, Chief Investment Officer of Paine Schwartz. "We have known and respected Kevin and the Merritt family for many years. Building on our experience in the upstream segments of the value chain and our many discussions with Kevin, we see significant opportunities ahead for Humic Growth Solutions to drive sales, invest in innovation and operate efficiently. We look forward to supporting Humic Growth Solutions and its team in the Company's next phase of growth and success."

About Humic Growth Solutions
Humic Growth Solutions is an American manufacturing company, specializing in the wet chemistry extraction of humic and fulvic acids, with a strong manufacturing footprint across the United States and Canada. Differentiated by its patented, uniquely-water soluble granulation technology, the Company provides high-quality humic and fulvic acid products globally improving the efficiency of global synthetic fertilizer use and improving soil health while sharing value with distributors, wholesalers, retailers and growers. For further information, please see www.humicgrowth.com.

About Paine Schwartz Partners
A global leader in sustainable food chain investing, Paine Schwartz Partners is a private equity firm focused exclusively on investment opportunities in the fast-growing, dynamic global food and agribusiness sectors. The firm's investment, operations and finance professionals invest throughout cycles across the food and agribusiness value chain, and bring a collaborative and active management approach to portfolio companies. For further information, please see www.paineschwartz.com.

Contacts:

Andy Brimmer / Aaron Palash
Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher
+1 212-355-4449

SOURCE Paine Schwartz Partners