CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, October 25, 2018 — XMS Capital Partners, LLC (“XMS”), a global, independent financial services firm focused on providing M&A, corporate advisory and asset management services, announced that it served as exclusive financial advisor to Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) on the sale of Fleischmann’s Vinegar, Inc. to Kerry Group for $350 million in cash, subject to certain post-closing working capital adjustments.

Fleischmann’s Vinegar is a USDA certified all-natural producer of specialty ingredients that supports Kerry’s taste and clean label strategies across a number of end-use markets. Fleischmann’s is headquartered in California with seven manufacturing facilities across the United States.

Brett Lilley, Executive Director of XMS Capital commented, “Fleischmann’s is an exciting clean label ingredients business with exposure to high-growth customers and category leaders. The acquisition of targets within this space remains highly competitive as the food and beverage landscape continues to experience unprecedented change in consumer behavior.”

“The sale of Fleischmann’s Vinegar marks a major milestone of our portfolio optimization plan which creates significant value for our shareholders as we continue to prove value of our asset base and position the company for the future.” said Todd Becker, President and CEO of Green Plains “Once completed, this transaction, plus the proceeds from the sale of the three ethanol facilities announced earlier this month, gives the company the ability to completely pay off our term loan B, invest in high-protein distillers grains process technology and repurchase shares when our stock is undervalued.”

Ted Brombach, Co-Founder of XMS Capital noted, “We have worked with Green Plains since 2007 and are grateful for our role as the lead advisor to Green Plains in its portfolio optimization plan, as well as our role as the exclusive financial advisor in the sale of Fleischmann’s. We are also excited for the Kerry team to continue to build and grow the business.”

The closing of the transaction is expected to occur during the fourth quarter of 2018 and is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.

About XMS Capital Partners

XMS Capital Partners, established in 2006, is a global, independent financial services firm providing investment banking, asset management and merchant banking services to clients. It has offices in Chicago, London and Dublin.

XMS provides Involvement BankingTM, which goes beyond transaction oriented investment banking and focuses on delivering objective, value added advice and custom tailored solutions to help clients achieve their strategic goals. It consistently creates value for its clients by giving them access to comprehensive, independent M&A, strategic advisory, financial restructuring, capital structure advisory and private capital advisory expertise.

XMS Capital Partners, LLC is a FINRA member and SIPC member. XMS Capital Partners (UK) Limited is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. For more information, please visit www.xmscapital.com.

Green Plains Inc.

Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) is a diversified commodity-processing business with operations related to ethanol production, grain handling and storage, cattle feeding, food ingredients, and commodity marketing and logistics services. The company is one of the leading producers of ethanol in the world and, through its adjacent businesses, is focused on the production of high-protein feed ingredients and export growth opportunities. Green Plains owns a 62.4% limited partner interest and a 2.0% general partner interest in Green Plains Partners. For more information, visit www.gpreinc.com.

Kerry Group

Kerry is the world leader in Taste and Nutrition, providing from food for food ingredients and solutions to the global food and beverage industry, as well as being a leading supplier of added value brands and customer branded foods to the Irish, UK and selected international markets. The company has offices in 30 countries, 135 manufacturing facilities and employs 25,000 people worldwide, including over 900 food scientists. With its strong food heritage, foundational technologies, proprietary global insight tools, marketplace knowledge, culinary and applications expertise, global footprint and route to market, Kerry provides unique solutions that meet consumers’ needs for more clean label and authentic products. For more information, visit www.kerrygroup.com.