Citrus Extracts partners with The Firmament Group and others to expand into cosmetic ingredients sector

21-May-2020 - Last updated on 21-May-2020 at 14:32 GMT

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Related tags upcycling Ingredient suppliers citrus Investment

This week, the food waste company and the debt and equity capital firm announced an investment deal meant to help Citrus Extracts grow beyond its current product line.

Citrus Extracts specializes in upcycling citrus waste from juice beverage processing. The company buys what it describes as “citrus peel material” from juice producers and then “mill[s] the pure, clean citrus product to [customer] specification from >4 mesh to <400 mesh,” according to the Citrus Extracts website.

Citrus extracts products are available all year round in a minimum order quantity (MOQ) of 50lbs through to “truckload” quantities. The company’s current product portfolio comprises orange, lemon, grapefruit, tangelo, and tangerine peel (and for some of these varieties, organic peel is available).

“SE is excited to work with Bill Howe, the current President of Citrus Extracts, as well as the McLean Family Office and The Firmament Group to bring resources to the company to expand its current product line sales and create new citrus based ingredients for the food industry including plant based alternative meats, bakery goods and the cosmetic industry,” says Charlie Sweat of investment firm Sweat Equities, one of three firms backing the company’s expansion.

Investors see opportunity in natural and organic consumer goods

At present, the Fort Pierce, Florida – based company’s business is squarely in the dehydrated citrus peel business, supplying food and beverage makers. But with the new investments (details of which were not made public), the company is poised to expand into other natural and organic consumer goods sectors.

Sweat Equities, the McLean Family Farms (MFF), and The Firmament Group have all invested in Citrus Extracts.

“We have worked with Citrus Extracts for the last five years developing a market for their products,” explains Matt McLean of MMF, in this week’s press release about the deal. “Citrus,” he says, “has a myriad of proven health benefits, beyond the juice. Citrus Extracts is a leading provider of dried citrus ingredients and we're excited about new innovation as well as our partnership with The Firmament Group and Sweat Equities.”

And Lisa Moraglia, Principal at Firmament, sees great promise in the new arrangement as well. “We are extremely excited to partner with MFF on this transaction given their wealth of knowledge in the citrus sector,” she says. “We strongly believe that MFF's focus on the organic segment of the market is in line with consumer demands and will prove invaluable in this investment.”

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Deanna Utroske is a leading voice in the cosmetics and personal care industry as well as in the indie beauty movement. As Editor of CosmeticsDesign.com, she writes daily news about the business of beauty in the Americas region and regularly produces video interviews with cosmetics, fragrance, personal care, and packaging experts as well as with indie brand founders. Deanna Utroske was recently featured on Publishing Executive.