Pangea Africa Limited and Black Star Africa Limited have jointly acquired a majority stake in Eden Tree Limited, Ghana’s leading producer and distributor of fresh, packaged fruits and vegetables.
The acquisition marks a significant milestone for Ghana’s agribusiness sector and demonstrates the growing capacity of the country’s financial ecosystem to execute complex investment transactions despite global economic uncertainties and local currency challenges.
Under the new ownership structure, Founder and former Chief Executive Officer, Madam Catherine Krobo Edusei, transitions to the role of Board Director and Founder Emeritus, while Mr Grant Webber assumes the position of Chief Executive Officer.
Pangea Africa and Black Star Africa acquired the majority shares from Investisseurs & Partenaires (I&P), an international impact investment fund, through a secondary market transaction.
The new investors said they would focus on expanding production, strengthening the company’s outgrower farmer network and enhancing its modern processing facilities to improve food security and reduce post-harvest losses across West Africa.
Madam Edusei said Eden Tree had demonstrated over nearly three decades that Ghanaian agribusinesses could meet international standards of food safety, quality and consistency.
She expressed confidence that the new owners would build on the company’s achievements and accelerate its regional growth.
Ms Tracy Boswell Scicchitano, an incoming Board Director of Eden Tree and Director at Pangea Africa, described the acquisition as a commitment to strengthening local food systems and supporting Ghanaian enterprise.
She said the transaction also reflected confidence in Ghana’s investment environment and reaffirmed the company’s commitment to maintaining strong female leadership at the governance level.
Ms Scicchitano noted that the acquisition came at a time when food insecurity remained a major global challenge, citing concerns over the slow progress towards achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Two on Zero Hunger.
She said the private sector had an important role to play in improving access to affordable and nutritious food across West Africa.
Mr John Scicchitano, Strategic Advisor at Pangea Africa, said the company planned to address high post-harvest losses by investing in solar-powered cold storage facilities, climate-smart drip irrigation systems and stronger outgrower cooperatives.
He said the interventions would help preserve food quality, reduce waste and lower the cost of nutritious food for consumers.
Mr Grant Webber, the new Chief Executive Officer of Eden Tree, said the immediate priority would be to optimise operations by combining Black Star Africa’s operational expertise with Pangea Africa’s strategic investment to build a leading fresh food business in West Africa.
Mr Francis Owusu of Investisseurs & Partenaires described the transaction as a successful example of international impact investing in Ghana.
He said I&P’s decade-long partnership with Eden Tree had supported the expansion of the company’s processing facilities and strengthened its operations, expressing confidence that the new investors would drive the next phase of the company’s growth.
