American Foods Group made the minimum bid of $12.75 million, which qualifies the company for an auction set for Dec. 5 at the US Bankruptcy Court in Sioux Falls. White Oak Global Advisors, an investment banking company that is working with Northern Beef, automatically qualified as a bidder.
Qualified bidders must be able to close the sale, and they must have 10 percent of the total available before Dec. 5, according to paperwork filed with the court. The bidder with the second highest bid will be the backup in case the top bidder can't complete the sale.
The American Foods Group website states the company is owned by Rosen's Diversified Inc., a holding company. American Foods Group is the fifth-largest beef processor in the country shipping more than 4 million lbs. of beef per day, according to the website. The company is supplier to foodservice, retail and international markets.
Northern Beef Packers filed for protection under Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Based on court documents, the plant is now facing $138.8 million in liabilities and has just $79.3 million in assets. The company also is the subject of an ongoing federal investigation into the firm's financial dealings and the federal EB-5 program, which encourages foreign investment in exchange for qualifications to secure permanent residency.
