Excellere Partners, a Denver-based private equity firm focused on partnering with middle-market entrepreneurs and management teams, announced today it has expanded its investment portfolio through a strategic equity investment in Flavours, a leading developer and contract manufacturer of organic, natural, and healthy beverages and snack foods. Flavours plans to use the capital and resources provided by Excellere to enhance its foundation and support future growth initiatives, including expanding production capabilities, recruiting additional executive talent and investing in capabilities to enhance product innovation.

Founded in 2003, Yorba Linda, Calif.-based Flavours is a leader in the development, production and packaging of functional, organic and healthy food and beverage products through its proprietary aseptic technologies and flavor systems. The company's capabilities support the entire product lifecycle - from concept development through manufacturing and product launch - for its food and beverage customers. Flavours' in-house research and development team assists customers with innovative product development while its 56,000 square-foot manufacturing facility conducts both short-run product testing as well as extended manufacturing for more established products.

"We are extremely pleased to be partnering with Excellere, and look forward to further enhancing our operations as well as the overall value that we provide our customers. The addition of more resources, including both human and financial capital, will allow Flavours to continue building upon our core competencies of product development, flavorings and aseptic co-packing services," said Joshua Cua, chief executive officer and founder of Flavours. "With our existing capabilities in high-acid (juice-based) aseptic packaging, we are excited to soon be able to provide our customers with aseptic packaging for low-acid (milk-based) products as well."

Concurrent with Excellere's investment, Flavours appointed three new senior executives including a chief financial officer, director of operations and director of quality and compliance. "These new additions to the Flavours team demonstrate our intent to capitalize on the opportunities afforded our company through this new partnership with Excellere. All three individuals have significant experience in the food and beverage industry and represent our focus on utilizing the Excellere investment to provide more value to our customers," added Cua.

The investment in Flavours marks Excellere's third investment launched from its $472 million Fund II, and a key milestone as the firm has been focused on identifying a business engaged in the healthy beverages and flavorings segment for more than two years.

"With Flavours, we have found a truly differentiated business model and a management team with extraordinary aspirations," states Ryan Heckman, managing partner with Excellere. "Flavours' value proposition and healthy alternative product focus is at the center of some of today's most powerful consumer and retail trends. With this infusion of capital, together we will have the opportunity to set new standards of quality, innovation and service. Excellere is honored to partner with and support the Flavours team."

About Flavours, Inc.

Founded in 2003 and headquartered in Yorba Linda, Calif., Flavours, Inc. is a leading developer and manufacturer of organic, natural, and healthy beverages and snack foods using both proprietary aseptic technologies and flavor systems. Flavours works with its customers from initial ideas and concept development through full scale production. The company's customers range from start-up businesses seeking to develop and launch new concepts to larger brands and private label clients as they evolve to exploit organic and healthy alternative consumer trends. For more information about Flavours, please visit http://www.flavoursinc.com.

About Excellere Partners

Excellere Partners is a Denver-based middle-market private equity firm with $737 million of capital under management. The firm specializes in partnering with entrepreneurs and management teams through majority recapitalizations and management buyouts. Excellere employs a buy-and-build strategy that provides its portfolio companies with capital as well as a proprietary value creation system designed to accelerate growth while enhancing corporate infrastructure. Investments are focused on companies within the following industries: healthcare; specialty foods; industrial technology and services; business services; and education and training. Excellere's current investments include Anesthesia Medical Group, AxelaCare Health Solutions, ASI Government, Flavours, Inc., Integrated Petroleum Technologies, Medtech College, Personable Insurance and U.S. Water Services. Recent successful exits completed by the firm include Advanced Pain Management, MedExpress and MTS Medication Technologies.