Danone ups stake in Moroccan dairy Central Laitière to 90%

By Mark ASTLEY

- Last updated on GMT

Central Laitière markets several Danone brands including Activia in Morocco.
Central Laitière markets several Danone brands including Activia in Morocco.

Related tags Stock market Africa Shareholder

Danone has agreed a €278m (US$348m) deal to increase its existing majority stake in Moroccan dairy Central Laitière to more than 90%.

The French dairy giant announced today it will acquire an additional 21.75% interest in Central Laitière from Moroccan investment firm Societe Nationale d'Investissement (SNI) for €278m.

Once the transaction is complete, Danone will hold 90.86% of all shares in the company.

Central Laitière, Morocco's largest dairy processor, controls nearly 60% of the Moroccan fresh dairy market.

Danone's shareholding in Central Laitière can be traced back to 2001, when it acquired a 29.2% stake in the company.

Ten-years later, in February 2013, Danone became the company's majority shareholder when it acquired an additional 46.8% stake from SNI for €543m (US$680m).

Speaking with DairyReporter.com at the time, Agnès Berthet-d'Anthonay, spokesperson, Danone, said the growth of African markets were “of great interest to Danone.”

“North Africa has always been important for Danone – it has a lot of potential.”

More to follow…

Related topics Manufacturers

Related news

Show more