Dedicated to investing in lifestyle brands, smaller portfolio brands and concepts as well as incubator opportunities, the Hain Celestial Group, Lake Success, NY, has launched its Cultivate Ventures platform. Brands should benefit from the larger scale and leverage of Hain Celestial's infrastructure and entrepreneurial roots while contributing to net sales and margin growth, according to the company.

The company plans to 1) strategically invest with a dedicated, creative focus for refresh and relaunch; 2) incubate small acquisitions until they reach the scale for the company's core platforms; and 3) invest in lifestyle brands, concepts, products and technology, which focus on health and wellness. Cultivate's brands include:

BluePrint: A pioneer of cold-pressed juices, juice drinks and functional beverages.

DeBoles: A full line of pastas including whole wheat featuring Jerusalem artichoke flour and gluten-free varieties made with rice, corn and quinoa grains that are undeniably nutritious and delicious.

GG Unique Fiber: Slow-baked crisp, hearty fiber-rich crackers made with wheat bran and whole grain rye flour.

SunSpire: Confectionery line including snacking and baking products that are certified organic and made with Fair Trade certified cocoa ingredients.

Tilda: Pure basmati rice and other grain products.

Yves Veggie Cuisine: Full line of meat-free products for the health conscious consumer including nutritious vegan and vegetarian options.

Cultivate will utilize several teams, including marketing, sales and supply chain, to reinvigorate its brands. Taking the entrepreneurial mindset to heart, the teams are charged with treating each brand as a startup, to quickly innovate concepts, product lines and categories.

Beena Goldenberg has been appointed CEO of Cultivate reporting to Irwin Simon, founder, president and CEO of Hain Celestial. In addition to her current role as CEO of Hain Celestial Canada, she will oversee Cultivate's mission to grow strategic investments and act as an incubator of small acquisitions: Fresh Living; Better-for-You Baby; Better-for-You Snacking, Better-for-You Pantry and Pure Personal Care.

"Since Hain Celestial's inception, we have invested in health and wellness brands and concepts, giving them the infrastructure to grow. We formed Cultivate Ventures to bring that legacy to our high potential brands, investing in teams with support and focus to help them thrive," said Mr. Simon. "Beena is now responsible for all aspects of Cultivate, including defining strategic direction, top-line revenue and profitability. Teams that include marketing, sales and supply chain functions will work with Beena to develop Cultivate and catalyze growth of the brands, along with identifying smaller acquisition and investment targets. These brands will benefit from Beena's proven track record in growing our Canadian subsidiary—both organically and through acquisitions over the past decade."

"Cultivate Ventures will renew our company's entrepreneurial spirit and reaffirm Hain Celestial's position as the leader to create and inspire  consumers with 'A Healthier Way of Life,'" said Ms. Goldenberg. "Cultivate will rely on key learnings from Hain Celestial's history of growing acquisitions by offering smaller brands access to our unique sourcing opportunities, manufacturing facilities and best practices in marketing and distribution in the natural and organic industry."

During fiscal year 2016 the wholly-owned Cultivate brands generated approximately $70 million in net sales. Cultivate will be managed under the Rest of World segment along with Hain Celestial Canada and Hain Celestial Europe. The company expects the brands will require investment and be neutral in earnings contribution in fiscal year 2017. As previously announced, the company has also identified certain brands representing approximately $30 million in net sales that no longer fit into its core strategy for future growth, which it plans to divest.