Due diligence services on sustainable UK forestry business

Cibus Fund II L.P.(Cibus), a sustainable food and agriculture fund, acquires Alba Trees, a UK market leader in the production and supply of cell-grown plants for sustainable forestry.

Services provided to Cibus in the acquisition of Alba Trees

We assisted Cibus by providing financial due diligence, tax due diligence and sale and purchase agreement (SPA) advisory services in their acquisition of Alba Trees. The Company is sector leader in the UK market, supplying cell-grown plants for sustainable forestry, native woodland and hedgerows.

Based in Scotland, the company supplies around 20 million trees for planting each year in the UK, helping to create new woodlands and increase the supply of home grown timber. This acquisition demonstrates the continued core focus for Cibus in environmental sustainability, which will be at the centre of Alba’s future growth plans through alignment with the UK Government’s ambitions to plant nearly a million hectares of new woodland in order to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

The acquisition will focus on expanding production whilst ensuring best-in-class agronomy for the benefits of plant health, product quality and resource efficiency. Cibus’ expertise in the industry will allow for seamless synergy with the other existing companies under their portfolio.

Tom Ritchie, Investment Director at Cibus, said, “Alba plays a prominent role in the UK forestry sector and is a large-scale contributor to biodiversity and natural capital projects. Cibus’ partnership with Alba will harness the benefits of cell-grown trees and to maximise the company’s future potential. It was a pleasure to work with Niraj and the Saffery team on this deal and Cibus thanks them for their efforts.”

We have worked closely with Cibus on two other deals – the acquisition of Aquapak and the acquisition of The Summer Berry Company.

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