Provena Foods Begins Initial Public Offering

Provena Foods Inc., a pizza topping and pasta manufacturer and food distributor in Santa Ana, began an initial public offering Thursday of 675,000 shares of common stock at $7 per share. The company said proceeds of the offering would be used to repay debt and to finance the purchase of a recently constructed pasta plant and additional equipment for that plant. The underwriting group for the stock offering was managed by Birr, Wilson Securities Inc. and Henry F. Swift & Co., regional brokerage houses headquartered in San Francisco.