Kraft Heinz acquires Cerebos' brands in AUD$290mn deal with Suntory
Suntory Beverage & food Ltd has entered into an agreement to sell its Cerebos’ Food & Instant Coffee Business in Australia and New Zealand as well as its Asian Home Gourmet Singapore business to The Kraft Heinz Company.
The AUD$290mn sale agreement which includes brands such as Saxa salt, Fountain sauces Gregg’s and Bisto brands, is expected to be completed in early 2018.
RELATED STORIES:
- Who is 29-year-old David Knopf, the new CFO of Kraft Heinz?
- Hilton Food Group acquires Seachill in £80.8mn deal
- ThaiBev acquires Myanmar Distillery Company for $1bn
The sale agreement doesn’t include the Cerebos Fresh Coffee business which Suntory will retain as it aims to capture a larger share of the global fresh coffee market.
The group said that food and instant coffee were not key categories for Suntory and that these market segments would benefit from being part of The Kraft Heinz Group which is the fifth-largest food and beverage company in the world.
Terry Svenson, Cerebos Australia and New Zealand “Food and instant coffee is not a core focus category for Suntory Beverage and Food and we believe this business can be maximised under different ownership.
“The food and instant coffee business will not have opportunities to leverage Kraft Heinz operations to grow the business further.”
Cerebos has a number of market-leading brands in New Zealand and Australia across a number of market segments including sauces, gravies, herbs and spices, salt, condiments, Asian sauces, desserts and cooking ingredients.
“The transaction provides an exciting opportunity for Kraft Heinz to expand its portfolio into complementary categories, stretching the footprint of Cerebos’ brands into new categories and markets,” said Bruno Lino, CEO of Kraft Heinz Australia and New Zealand who will lead the combined business.
“In addition to the iconic local brands, Cerebos has a strong team that will play an important role in our future growth. This transaction reinforces our commitment and long-term plan to the Australia and New Zealand markets in addition to our significant investment in the Kraft brand for 2018. We will continue investing in our brands, factories and our employees to meet consumer needs and expectations.”