The deal, which was first announced in May 2012, gives Bright a 60% stake in the Alpen and Ready Brek breakfast cereal maker. The other 40% of Weetabix shares are held by private equity group Lion Capital.
Bright Food chairman Zongnan Wang, said: “Bright Food will increase the level of investment in Weetabix brands and product innovation to facilitate its development in the international markets.
“We are confident that with support from Bright Food, Weetabix’s sales in China will outperform the growth of the Chinese cereal market.”
Weetabix CEO Giles Turrell welcomed the deal and the additional investment it will bring. “We are delighted about our partnership with Bright Food. We are confident that with Bright Food’s support we will be able to significantly strengthen our market position and expand our business internationally.”
Bright’s £700m majority stake to buy out 60% of Weetabix is reported in the Chinese media as being the biggest ever M&A deal for a Chinese company. Last year, Shanghai-based and State-owned Bright Dairy, one of the largest food companies in China, posted annual sales of 76.9b yuan and 2.65b yuan of net profit.
Weetabix is the UK’s second largest maker of breakfast cereals, after Kellogg. It has about 14.5% of the UK market share and exports its products to over 80 countries.
Source: China Daily
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