Nestle buys Gerber
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
Nestle will pay $5.5 bil. to acquire the Gerber baby food brand and assume the top position in the U.S. baby food market, the company announces April 12. The purchase follows Nestle's recent acquisitions of Jenny Craig and Novartis Medical Nutrition. The deal will bring annual sales for Nestle Nutrition to nearly $8.2 bil. and will provide the division "with an enhanced critical mass and access to the Group's global R&D network to drive innovation," Nestle says. The firm expects the deal to be completed during the second half of 2007. Plans to expand its baby food business align with Nestle's recent announcement that it will launch a probiotic infant formula...