Merchants Foodservice, Hattiesburg, Miss., acquired E.G. Forrest Co., a food distributor headquartered in Winston-Salem, N.C.

The E.G. Forrest assets will improve the coverage and distribution area of Merchants, which currently serves more than 6,000 customers in 10 Southeastern states through four state-of-the-art distribution facilities and a fleet of multi-temperature tractor-trailer units. Select E.G. Forrest assets will be folded into the Merchants distribution facility and warehouse in Newberry, S.C.

“We are excited about welcoming our new customers into the Merchants family and expanding our customer base in the area,” says Andy Mercier, Merchants president and CEO. “We look forward to serving the independent restaurant community of North Carolina.”

“Our company is proud to join another strong, independent and family-owned business to continue serving the E.G. Forrest customers in the customer service-oriented business approach we’ve maintained for nearly a century,” says Louis Forrest, chief executive officer of E.G. Forrest.