The century-old American toffee brand changes hands, and Roca is fully acquired.

Author | Zhong Yixuan

Editor | Qiao Qian

36Kr learned that BHM Group has completed a full acquisition of Brown & Haley, a century-old American confectionery and chocolate manufacturer. Brown & Haley, founded in 1912, is headquartered in the United States and owns confectionery and chocolate brands such as Almond ROCA and Mountain. The transaction was officially completed on April 17, 2026. This acquisition will not affect Brown & Haley's headquarters production base in Tacoma, and its original production and operations will remain stable.

It is reported that Sam Meng will serve as the global CEO of Brown & Haley. He is also the exclusive importer and brand licensee of Almond ROCA (hereinafter referred to as "ROCA") in the Greater China region for the past decade. After the acquisition, Kathi Rennaker, the former executive of Brown & Haley, will serve as the COO of the US company to help the brand make a smooth transition and implement its strategies.

Notably, BHM Group's acquisition this time received investment from Proterra Investment Partners, an asset management company focusing on private equity investment in the food and agriculture sectors. Formerly the Global Capital Markets Department of Cargill, Proterra Investment Partners has a history of over 20 years. In China, Proterra Investment Partners has invested in brands such as Huang Tian'e, Jane's Yogurt, Westland Food, and Hanyun Dairy.

Founded in 1923, ROCA is the core brand of Brown & Haley, and its iconic product is toffee almond candy. At the source factory in Tacoma, USA, ROCA uses an exclusive toffee-making process to produce unique toffee almond candies for consumers around the world. Packaged in the classic pink box, ROCA products are now exported to 63 countries and regions around the world.

In 2023, on the occasion of ROCA's centenary, the local government in Tacoma designated October 10th as "ROCA Day".

ROCA has a long history in the Chinese market. In the 1960s, ROCA entered the Hong Kong market and officially landed on the Chinese mainland market in 1988. Now, China has become its second-largest market after the United States.

In terms of channel layout, ROCA currently covers almost all major sales channels in the United States and has had stable cooperation relationships with leading supermarkets such as Costco, Walmart, Trader Joe’s, and Sam’s Club for decades. In the Chinese market, the brand has also accelerated channel penetration in recent years. Its products have entered mainstream retail channels such as Sam's Club and Hema. Among them, the customized popcorn for Sam's Club was successfully selected as one of the "Spring Outing Snacks" recommended by Sam's Club.

Sam Meng told 36Kr that although Brown & Haley had brand assets in the past, it was relatively conservative in brand promotion and positioned itself more as a local American confectionery and chocolate manufacturer. After the acquisition, BHM Group will promote its core strategic transformation from a local American manufacturer to a global brand snack group, which will be carried out around four major directions:

First, continuously strengthen the advantage of ROCA's classic toffee as a major product and further expand its market influence. Second, leverage ROCA's brand potential to expand into new product categories such as puffed food and biscuits. Currently, ROCA's popcorn has successfully entered Sam's Club in China. Third, rely on the advantages of mainstream offline channels in the United States to introduce cost-effective products produced by Chinese supply chains and incubate new brands. For example, the wafer brand Krispy Shark launched in 2024 has successfully entered mainstream supermarkets in the United States such as Walmart, Walgreens, and ROSS. Fourth, develop the To B business. Previously, ROCA had become the exclusive raw material supplier of cocoa-flavored beverages for a leading American coffee chain brand. In the future, it will continue to expand cooperation with coffee, ice cream, and baking brands in the Asian market.

Over the past few decades, ROCA has established a strong brand and consumer base in southern China. In Guangdong, ROCA, Blue Ribbon Cookies, Lindt, and Ferrero are regarded as the "Four Kings" for New Year gift-giving. In the Hong Kong market, the brand's influence and product penetration are even stronger.

"Since 1923, ROCA has been focusing on toffee almond candies for a century and has always maintained a mid - to high - end positioning. It has a very wide and loyal consumer group around the world, which is very rare. It can be said that ROCA is a leading global high - end toffee brand and one of the best toffee product manufacturers in North America and even the world," Wang Ziting, the current managing director of Proterra Investment Partners, told 36Kr.

Wang Ziting said that the core reason for Proterra Investment Partners to jointly conduct the acquisition with BHM is to recognize ROCA's century - old brand value, the possibility of brand extension into new product categories, the existing mainstream offline direct - supply sales channels in North America with an average history of over 40 years, the distributor channels covering 63 countries and regions around the world, and the great potential for improving operational efficiency.

From an industry background perspective, although confectionery and chocolate are traditional product categories, market demand has always maintained stable growth and is irreplaceable in scenarios such as festivals and gift - giving. Data from CIC shows that in 2023, the scale of the Chinese snack market reached 1.27 trillion yuan, of which the confectionery and chocolate category accounted for about 7.1%, with a market scale of about 90.17 billion yuan. It is expected to maintain a compound annual growth rate of 2% from 2023 to 2028. According to a report from research institution Circana, the US dollar sales of candies increased by 5% year - on - year in 2025, achieving year - on - year growth for five consecutive years, indicating a good development trend in the industry.

In addition, 36Kr also learned that to accelerate the market layout in the Asia - Pacific region, ROCA has officially established its Asia - Pacific headquarters, with Jeff Wang serving as the Chief Operating Officer for the Asia - Pacific region. Jeff Wang has 20 years of marketing experience and previously worked at PepsiCo Foods China for a long time.