DALLAS — Muenster Milling Company, a fourth-generation family-owned pet food and ingredient producer based in Muenster, Texas, was acquired by private equity firm Kainos Capital on Aug. 12.

Founded in 1932, Muenster Milling was the featured processor profile in the September 2019 issue of Pet Food Processing magazine, in which we shed light on the company’s origins and history, its nutritional philosophies, and an investment in freeze-drying that has led the company through a new phase of growth.

The company is currently led by brothers Mitch and Chad Felderhoff. Mitch serves as president and Chad as the director of operations.

“We are excited to add Muenster to the Kainos portfolio of companies and to partner with owners Mitch and Chad to build a broader platform in the pet food and ingredient space,” said Andrew Rosen, managing partner at Kainos. “We believe Muenster has a powerful value proposition to pet owners seeking clean-label, high-protein and convenient pet food and treats. The Kainos team has been investing behind these themes for many years, and we plan to leverage the Kainos Operations Team to expand and further professionalize Muenster’s manufacturing capabilities.

“Through this proprietary transaction we are honored to be a part of the next phase of growth for this fast-growing and innovative pet food manufacturing and branded business.”

Muenster Milling has been historically focused on dry extruded pet foods since 1989, but pivoted to incorporate freeze-drying capabilities in 2018, including a new 17,000-square-foot freeze-dry facility across the street from its original building.

The company’s natural pet food brands include Ancient Grains, Grain Free and Perfect Balance dry dog foods and freeze-dried dog treats along with freeze-dried meal toppers and complete-and-balanced freeze-dried pet foods for both dogs and cats. The company also produces the Milestone brand of horse food and chicken food and co-manufactures private label brands of both dry food and freeze-dried food and treats for primarily regional customers in and around Texas.

“We are excited to partner with the team at Kainos Capital, which has been consistently successful in supporting family-founded, growing businesses with their operational expertise, consumer knowledge, and industry relationships with retailers and distributors,” Mitch said.

Chad added, “It is very important to us that Kainos values and appreciates the culture that our family has built at Muenster Milling since 1932. Their operational capabilities will be invaluable as we scale the business and add capacity for future growth.”

Kainos Capital focuses its investments exclusively in the food and consumer products markets. The private equity firm has invested more than $3 billion across over 75 transactions.

Read more about Muenster Milling Company in our exclusive processor profile from September 2019.

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