Central Garden & Pet Company, the nation's leading manufacturer, supplier, and merchandiser of
consumer lawn and garden and pet supply products, today announced that its subsidiary Pennington Seed Inc. has acquired Unicorn Laboratories. Unicorn serves the U.S. animal health and lawn and garden industries as a private label and branded manufacturer. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. 

Unicorn has annual sales of approximately $15 million and has approximately 25 employees.
Unicorn holds 212 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency registrations, and as a result of the
acquisition, Central and its subsidiaries will hold more pesticide product registrations than all but one other company in the U.S. 

"This strategic acquisition represents another important step in enhancing our garden products
business. Unicorn has a strong name in its market and an outstanding product line, which we believe will benefit Central in the long-term,'' said William E. Brown, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. 

Brooks Pennington III, President of Pennington Seed, Inc., said "Pennington has had a long
relationship with Unicorn's CEO Barry Santerre and his group, and we are excited to have them join our team.'' 

Central Garden & Pet Company is the nation's leading manufacturer, supplier, and merchandiser of consumer lawn and garden and pet supply products. Central's proprietary branded products include Pennington Seed®, Kaytee®, TFH®, Nylabone®, Zodiac®, and Four Paws® pet products, Island® aquariums, Matthews® Four Seasons products and Grant's® ant control products. Central offers its retail and branded manufacturing partners a wide array of value-added services proven to increase sales and profitability, including logistics and distribution support, inventory management, advertising and promotional programs, in-store merchandising service, and sales program development. 

Company news release
N2384