Pierre Foods,Advance Food CompanyandAdvance Brandssaid they officially closed a merger to formAdvancePierre Foods. Officials said the combined entity, headquartered in Cincinnati, has approximately $1.3 billion in net sales. 

Officials describe AdvancePierre as a leading supplier of value-added protein and hand-held convenience products to the foodservice, school, retail, club, vending and convenience store markets.  The company offers a broad line of packaged sandwiches, fully cooked chicken and beef products, Philly-style steak, breaded beef, pork and poultry, and bakery products. 

Credit Suisse, Barclays Capital, Morgan Stanley, BMO Capital Markets and Deutsche Bank led financing syndication, officials said. More than 75 lenders are part of the syndicate and normal working capital needs will be satisfied with a senior secured revolving credit facility supplied by Wells Fargo.  AdvancePierre Foods said it is owned by funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, LP, current Advance shareholders, and members of the company's leadership team. 

Advance Pierre said it retains some divisional leadership based in Oklahoma. Meanwhile, the business operates protein processing facilities in Oklahoma, Ohio and Iowa as well as sandwich assembly facilities in North Carolina, Ohio and South Carolina. The company also operates bakeries in North Carolina and Oklahoma. 

Bill Toler, Pierre Foods' previous CEO, is the CEO of the new company. The management team for AdvancePierre Foods includes executives from all three companies.