Organic Plant Health Inc. (OPHI), a Charlotte, NC, producer of organic-based and hybrid turf and garden care products used in residential and commercial applications, has acquired Kenactiv Innovations Inc., a Scottsdale, AZ, manufacturer of kenaf-based products for applications including nonwovens and other textiles, automotive parts, packaging, plastic composites, agriculture, environmental management and oil drilling.

OPHI and Kenactiv entered into a Share Exchange Agreement, in which Kenactiv issued 50 million shares of Kenactiv common stock (constituting 52% of the outstanding shares of Kenactiv) to OPHI and OPHI issued 54 million shares of OPHI common stock (constituting 97% of the outstanding shares of OPHI), to Kenactiv.

OPHI will change its name to Kenactiv Innovations Inc. and its new board of directors will consist of Christopher Galvin, Billy Styles and Cameron Adair. Governance of both Kenactiv Innovations and Kenactiv will be controlled by the board of directors of Kenactiv Innovations.

The combined entity, Kenactiv Innovations, will bring increased awareness to the benefits of kenaf, a plant with a favorable carbon footprint and a multitude of uses says the company. By replacing petroleum-based products and other, less sustainable, natural products with its line of products derived from kenaf, Kenactiv says manufactures can reduce their carbon footprint, reduce costs and improve the performance of their products.

“The demand for our natural fiber solutions from the automotive, energy and consumer products sectors has ramped up significantly over the past year,” says Christopher Galvin, Kenactiv’s chairman and CEO. “Becoming a public company through the acquisition by OPHI will enhance our ability to create shareholder value. We intend to rapidly scale production to support expansion of our revenue base through our DrillWall, FiberZorb and other natural fiber solutions. Our two companies share important synergies and OPHI’s portfolio of sustainable lawn and garden products is a great complement to our retail platform.”

Christopher Galvin, chairman and CEO of Kenactiv is appointed chairman, president and CEO of Kenactiv Innovations; David Querciagrossa, of Kenactiv, is appointed CFO of Kenactiv Innovations; and Michael Sinnwell, Jr., also of Kenactiv, is appointed COO. Billy Styles, founder of OPHI, will serve as president of the division focused on Kenactiv Innovations’ lawn and garden division, and Alan Talbert, of OPHI, becomes vice president of operations of that division.

Kenactiv owns and operates a 160,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Snow Hill, NC. The facility is able to process 2 million square meters per month of nonwoven natural fiber felts, as well as 2 million pounds per month of raw kenaf for various textile and non-textile products, and 1 million pounds per month of products such as sorbents derived from the inner core of the kenaf plant, according to Margaret Skriloff, vice president marketing and communications, Kenactiv.