Call Leerdammer soon in the hands of Lactalis

French dairy Lactalis has advanced plans to acquire Bel Leerdammer from Bel Group. Both parties announced this in a press release. Jeroen van Maanen, spokesperson on behalf of the supplier association LVLC, is surprised with the news. "We haven't had any contact with France yet. Is it a paper shift, or will this really have a major impact on us? We don't know."

The alleged takeover appears to be complicated. In a press release, Lactalis and Bel Group jointly announce that Lactalis has plans to acquire Bel Leerdammer in exchange for a package of almost 1,6 million shares of Bel. That is 23,16% of the total. Van Maanen: "We do not know with this announcement whether it is a paper-based, creative transaction or whether it is actually an acquisition with major consequences."

The news comes as a surprise to the spokesperson for the supplier association. "We haven't had any contact with our people in France yet, so I can't add anything concrete yet. But, in my opinion, things are not going so bad with Leerdammer that Bel Group would want to divest it. The only tricky point we run into, is offering a cost-effective milk price. We are working on that and I don't think that is the reason to let the brand go," says Van Maanen.

Stimulate further growth
According to the two French family businesses, the revenue of Leerdammer and Shostka Ukraine, which is also part of the acquisition, last year amounted to €500 million. €350 million of this will come from Leerdammer. Since Bel Group bought the brand in 2002, Leerdammer's turnover and profit have almost doubled. "This deal gives us an opening to the Dutch cheese market," Emmanuel Besnier, chairman of the Lactalis Group, wrote in the message.

Besnier continues: "The acquisition of the Italian, German and Ukrainian subsidiaries will strengthen our position in these countries. The sale of the company is also in line with Bel Group's strategy, as the French family business aims to strengthen its position as a major player in the field of healthy snacks."

The boards of directors of Lactalis and Bel Group have already approved the acquisition. It is now awaiting approval from the staff councils and competition authorities. Completion is expected by the end of the summer.

Kimberly Baker

Kimberly Bakker is an all-round editor at Boerenbusiness. She also has an eye for the social media channels of Boerenbusiness.

k.baker @boerenbusiness. Nl

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