Nutraceutical buys Arizona Health Foods

Nutraceutical International said today it has entered into a purchase and sale agreement to acquire substantially all of the operating assets of Arizona Health Foods, through its subsidiary, Fresh Vitamins. The deal, subject to certain contingencies, is expected to conclude in the next six weeks.

Bill Gay, chairman and chief executive officer of Nutraceutical, said that the acquisition was an important part of the overall business strategy and would increase understanding of core customers. Financial terms of the deal have not yet been made available.

Headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona Health Foods owns and operates a chain of 11 health food stores, which primarily sell branded nutritional supplements. President Hal Cooper said that Nutraceutical was "the right partner to help us grow our business and serve our customers in today's competitive market"​.

Nutraceutical, which makes supplements such as the Solaray, NaturalMax, VegLife, Thompson and Nature's Life brands, also owns the Real Food Company and Thom's Natural Foods markets. Earlier this month it bought the Nature's Life brand, paying around $10.8 million in cash for 100 per cent of the stock of M.K. Health Food Distributors. It has been a supplier to Arizona Health Foods for several years.