LAKE SUCCESS, NY. – The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. plans to acquire the Parmcrisps and Thinsters snack brands from the private equity firm Clearlake Capital Group LP, Santa Monica, Calif., for $259 million.

Parmcrisps are formulated using Parmesan cheese and available in a variety of flavors. Thinsters are reduced calorie, bite-size cookies that are marketed as clean label.

“We are excited to welcome Parmcrisps and Thinsters to the Hain family and support the brands’ next chapter of growth,” said Mark Schiller, president and chief executive officer of Hain Celestial. “Parmcrisps and Thinsters are attractive clean label snacks that address the needs of a growing base of health-conscious consumers.”

Clearlake Capital acquired the brands in 2014. Other food brands included in Clearlake’s portfolio include Bakemark, Chef’s Cut jerky and From the Ground Up.

“Several years ago, Clearlake identified market demand for better-for-you snacks that enable consumers to make healthier lifestyle choices,” said Sean Courtney, vice president of Clearlake Capital. “We believed we could establish differentiated better-for-you snack brands that would benefit from a multi-channel commercial strategy geared toward club, grocery, mass, and ecommerce channels, as well as an emphasis on product innovation and operational excellence.

“Further, we recognized the importance of protecting the brands’ proprietary manufacturing processes by building and growing our production capabilities and pursuing operational excellence. We are proud of the success of the ParmCrisps and Thinsters brands, and look forward to their continued growth under Hain Celestial’s leadership.”

Other snack brands owned by Hain Celestial include Health Valley, Garden of Eatin’, Sensible Portions and Terra.

The acquisition of the snack brands aligns with Hain Celestial’s Hain 3.0 business plan. During the company’s investor day this past September, Mr. Schiller said snacks was one of three growth categories for the company. The other two were meat alternatives and dairy alternatives.