HAMILTON, Mont., Oct. 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Breakthrough
U.S. indoor agriculture company Local Bounti Corporation ("Local
Bounti"), today is pleased to provide several significant corporate
updates.
A leader in the controlled environment agriculture ("CEA")
space, where it uses 90% less water and 90% less land than
traditional agriculture, Local Bounti is focused on significantly
increasing produce shelf life, reducing waste and emissions, and
addressing the availability of high-quality produce in local
communities. Local Bounti's sustainably-grown produce is cultivated
locally, reducing food miles – the largest contributor to
greenhouse gas emissions in the current produce supply chain. The
environmental greenhouse conditions help to ensure nutritional
value and taste, and Local Bounti's products are non-GMO and
pesticide/herbicide free. Local Bounti's sustainable, root-on,
living product results in less environmental impacts, carbon
footprint, and less waste.
Expands Retail Footprint with Significant New Customer Win by
Adding Major Grocery Retailer Albertsons
Local Bounti recently expanded its retail footprint with a
significant new customer win by adding Albertsons, the second
largest traditional grocery retailer in the U.S., to its customer
base with products initially being rolled out to 84 locations in
Utah, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and Oregon, to provide Local Bounti's expanded
lineup of leafy greens and herbs that will arrive in-store within
days of harvest. With the addition of these stores, Local Bounti's
distribution network now exceeds 500 retail locations and with this
development Local Bounti is one of the most widely distributed
indoor growers of leafy greens in the region.
Accelerated Completion of Flagship Hamilton Facility with
Land Acquired for R&D Facility
Local Bounti completed expansion of its flagship Hamilton, Montana facility, which was
originally expected to be completed and operational by the end of
the fourth quarter of 2021. This facility became operational a
quarter ahead of plan after increasing capacity by approximately
140 percent to meet rapidly growing demand. Local Bounti also
recently acquired 20 acres of land adjacent to the Hamilton location for a planned R&D
facility.
Update on Additional Site Locations
Local Bounti reported that it is under contract for a planned
facility (its fourth facility) in Nevada, subject to due diligence and customary
closing conditions. Local Bounti's second facility in Pasco, WA and third planned facility in
Colorado are on track for
completion and to be operational as planned. Local Bounti continues
to see increasing demand in each of these geographies for its
products.
Building Out Pipeline of Additional Product SKUs
In response to growing customer demand, Local Bounti launched
spring mix in the third quarter of 2021, increasing its SKU count
from seven to eight. Spring mix joins Local Bounti's existing
line-up alongside red-green blend, crispy green leaf, butter head,
loose leaf butter, romaine, cilantro, and basil. Additional
products targeted for release in the first half of 2022 include
spinach and arugula, among others.
On Track to Close Planned Business Combination with Leo
Holdings III Corp
Local Bounti and Leo Holdings III Corp (NYSE: LIII) ("Leo") are
pleased with the solid execution and significant progress achieved
by Local Bounti since announcing the business combination and are
thankful for the support of investors interested in the continued
growth of Local Bounti. Both parties expect the planned business
combination to close in the fourth quarter of 2021 to take Local
Bounti public.
"We are exceptionally pleased with our execution on multiple
fronts in rapidly building our business toward fast facility and
revenue scale up," said Craig
Hurlbert, co-CEO of Local Bounti. "I'm proud of our Local
Bounti team in making this happen and it illustrates the strength
in our business model and strategy, along with demonstrating the
growing appetite our retailer and consumer customers have for
longer lasting, sustainably grown fresh produce. Successful
completion of these initiatives further paves the way toward our
plans to have the best unit economics and growth trajectory of any
company in the CEA space. We also continued the forward
progress with our planned business combination with Leo so we can
continue our mission as a publicly traded company," continued Mr.
Hurlbert.
Local Bounti estimates that the total U.S. market for herbs and
vegetables is anticipated to reach $30
billion by 2025, with less than one percent of leafy greens
being grown indoors today. To learn more about Local Bounti's
unique growing process, diversified product offerings and
experienced leadership team, please visit localbounti.com.
In June 2021, Local Bounti and Leo
announced that they entered into a definitive business combination
agreement. Upon the closing of the proposed business combination
(the "Business Combination") between Leo and Local Bounti, which
remains subject to customary closing conditions, Local Bounti
expects its common stock and warrants to trade on the New York
Stock Exchange under the new ticker symbols, "LOCL" and "LOCLW,"
respectively.
About Local Bounti
Local Bounti is a premier controlled environment agriculture
(CEA) company redefining conversion efficiency and environmental,
social and governance (ESG) standards for indoor agriculture. Local
Bounti operates an advanced indoor growing facility in Hamilton, Montana, within a few hours' drive
of its retail and food service partners. Reaching retail shelves in
record time post-harvest, Local Bounti produce is superior in taste
and quality compared to traditional field-grown greens. Local
Bounti's USDA Harmonized Good Agricultural Practices (GAP Plus+)
and non-genetically modified organisms (GMO) produce is sustainably
grown using proprietary technology 365 days a year, free of
pesticides and herbicides, and using 90 percent less land and water
than conventional outdoor farming methods. With a mission to 'bring
our farm to your kitchen in the fewest food miles possible,' Local
Bounti is disrupting the cultivation and delivery of produce. Local
Bounti is also committed to making meaningful connections and
giving back to each of the communities it serves. To find out more,
visit localbounti.com or follow the company
on LinkedIn for the latest news and developments.
Additional Information
In connection with the Business Combination, Leo filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), on July 19, 2021, a Registration Statement on Form
S-4 (as amended or supplemented through the date hereof, the
"Registration Statement"), which includes a joint proxy
statement/prospectus (the "Joint Proxy Statement/Prospectus"). The
Registration Statement has been declared effective by the SEC and
is being mailed to Leo's shareholders and public warrant holders.
Shareholders and public warrant holders will also be able to obtain
copies of the Proxy Statement/Prospectus at the SEC's website at
www.sec.gov or by directing a request to: Leo Holdings III Corp, 21
Grosvenor Pl, London SW1X 7HF,
United Kingdom. Leo shareholders
and public warrant holders are encouraged to read the Joint Proxy
Statement/Prospectus, including, among other things, the reasons
for Leo's Board of Directors' unanimous recommendation that
shareholders vote "FOR" the Business Combination and the other
shareholder and warrant holder proposals set forth therein as well
as the background of the process that led to the pending Business
Combination with Local Bounti.
Participants in the Solicitation
Leo and its directors, executive officers, other members of
management, and employees, under SEC rules, may be deemed to be
participants in the solicitation of proxies of Leo's shareholders
in connection with the Business Combination and public warrant
holders in connection with the proposed amendment to the warrant
agreement that governs all of Leo's outstanding warrants (the
"Warrant Amendment"). Investors and security holders may
obtain more detailed information regarding the names of Leo's
directors and executive officers and a description of their
interests in Leo in Leo's filings with the SEC, including the Joint
Proxy Statement/Prospectus. Shareholders and public
warrant holders will also be able to obtain copies of the Joint
Proxy Statement/Prospectus at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov or
by directing a request to: Leo Holdings III Corp, 21 Grosvenor Pl,
London SW1X 7HF, United Kingdom.
Local Bounti and its directors and executive officers may also
be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from
the shareholders of Leo in connection with the Business Combination
and the public warrant holders of Leo in connection with the
proposed Warrant Amendment. A list of the names of such directors
and executive officers and information regarding their interests in
the Business Combination is included in the Joint Proxy
Statement/Prospectus for the Business Combination.
Forward Looking Statements
This communication includes "forward-looking statements" within
the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Leo's and Local Bounti's
actual results may differ from their expectations, estimates and
projections and consequently, you should not rely on these
forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. Words
such as "expect," "estimate," "project," "budget," "forecast,"
"anticipate," "intend," "plan," "may," "will," "could," "should,"
"believes," "predicts," "potential," "continue," and similar
expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking
statements. These forward-looking statements include, without
limitation, Leo's and Local Bounti's expectations with respect to
future performance and anticipated financial impacts of the
proposed Business Combination, the satisfaction of the closing
conditions to the Business Combination and the timing of the
completion of the Business Combination. These forward-looking
statements involve significant risks and uncertainties that could
cause the actual results to differ materially from the expected
results. Most of these factors are outside Leo's and Local Bounti's
control and are difficult to predict. Factors that may cause such
differences include, but are not limited to: (1) the occurrence of
any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to
the termination of the Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of
June 17, 2021 (as it may be amended,
supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the "Merger
Agreement"), by and among Leo, Longleaf Merger Sub, Inc., Longleaf
Merger Sub II, LLC and Local Bounti, (2) the outcome of any
legal proceedings that may be instituted against Leo and Local
Bounti following the announcement of the Merger Agreement and the
transactions contemplated therein; (3) the inability to complete
the proposed Business Combination, including due to failure to
obtain approval of the shareholders of Leo or other conditions to
closing in the Merger Agreement; (4) the occurrence of any event,
change or other circumstance that could give rise to the
termination of the Merger Agreement or could otherwise cause the
Business Combination to fail to close; (5) the amount of redemption
requests made by Leo's shareholders; (6) the inability to obtain or
maintain the listing of the post-business combination company's
common stock on the New York Stock Exchange following the proposed
Business Combination; (7) the risk that the proposed Business
Combination disrupts current plans and operations as a result of
the announcement and consummation of the proposed Business
Combination; (8) the ability to recognize the anticipated benefits
of the proposed Business Combination, which may be affected by,
among other things, competition, the ability of the combined
company to grow and manage growth profitably and retain its key
employees; (9) costs related to the proposed Business Combination;
(10) changes in applicable laws or regulations; (11) the
possibility that Local Bounti or the combined company may be
adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or competitive
factors; and (12) other risks and uncertainties indicated from time
to time in the Joint Proxy Statement/Prospectus relating to the
Business Combination, including those under "Risk Factors" and
"Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" in Leo's
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended
June 30, 2021, and which are set
forth in the Registration Statement filed by Leo and in Leo's other
filings with the SEC. Some of these risks and uncertainties may in
the future be amplified by the COVID-19 outbreak and there may be
additional risks that we consider immaterial or which are unknown.
It is not possible to predict or identify all such risks. Leo
cautions that the foregoing list of factors is not exclusive. Leo
cautions readers not to place undue reliance upon any
forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they
are made. Leo does not undertake or accept any obligation or
undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements to
reflect any change in its expectations or any change in events,
conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is
based.
No Offer or Solicitation
This communication is for informational purposes only and is
neither an offer to purchase, nor a solicitation of an offer to
sell, subscribe for or buy any securities or the solicitation of
any vote in any jurisdiction pursuant to the Business Combination
or otherwise, nor shall there be any sale, issuance or transfer or
securities in any jurisdiction in contravention of applicable
law.
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SOURCE Local Bounti