MWBrands and its brand JOHN West Tuna, Britain’s leading canned fish brand, are for sale at £400m.
Owned by MWBrands since 2006, it is being put up for sale by Trilantic Capital Partners, the former Lehman Brothers private equity business.
This is the first major disposal by the private equity firm since it was bought out from the collapsed Lehman Brothers Merchant Banking by its former bosses.
Trilantic has mandated UBS with sale of MWBrands, of which the John West brands are a part.
Other related MWBrands subsidiaries for sale are Petit Navire, in France, Mareblu in Italy and Permentier sardines.
The UK and France account for 43% of group sales by region and tuna accounts for 71.4% of total sales.
The sale of the Tithebarn Street- based company will start during the next few weeks. It is the latest private equity deal to re-enter the market after an 18-months of little activity.
Scotsman John West had interests in salmon and canning and set up his first cannery in Oregon, US, in 1868.
Two Liverpool merchants TL Pelling and CH Stanley began importing salmon and purchased the rights to use the John West name in 1888.
Their first John West branded canned salmon UK sales were in 1892.
Lord Leverhulme assumed control with Unilever acquiring all shares in 1963, renaming it John West Foods Ltd, before selling to Heinz in 1997.
