Lactalis do Brasil reached an agreement to acquire DPA Brasil (Dairy Partners America), a joint venture created between Fonterra (Chile) and Nestlé in 2003 to manufacture and market dairy products throughout Latin America. The value of the transaction is US$136.6 million (R$700 million as of January 25, 2022).
Under the signed agreement, Lactalis do Brasil will take over DPA, a company that gathers distribution centers, two factories located in Araras (SP) and Garanhuns (PE), being responsible for the manufacture and distribution of products of different brands, such as Chambinho, Chamyto and Chandelle.
For these three brands, the intellectual property rights in the country will be transferred with the acquisition. The agreement also provides for a long-term license to use Nestlé brands such as Ninho, Neston, Molico and Nesfit exclusively for the refrigerated dairy segment, so that DPA will continue to manufacture and distribute these products.
In this transaction, signed on December 12, Demarest Advogados represented Lactalis do Brasil.
The announcement will add representative brands to Lactalis do Brasil’s refrigerated portfolio, which today already includes the well-known Parmalat, Président, Poços de Caldas, Batavo, Itambé and Elegê.
“The acquisition of DPA brings a lot of complementarity to our portfolio of brands and products, in addition to helping to expand our commercial coverage through the expansion of geographic areas. It consolidates Lactalis as a responsible leader in dairy products in Brazil, capable of accompanying the entire production chain in a process of continuous improvement of its competitiveness. We will continue to work with the DPA team to increasingly improve the quality and productivity of milk in the field, which translates into benefits for the entire sector and, mainly, for the Brazilian consumer”, says Patricio Sauvageot, president of Lactalis for Brazil and Cone Sul.
The terms of the agreement will be submitted to the Administrative Council of Economic Defense (Cade) for consideration.
Lactalis is a French family-owned company created in 1933 by André Besnier. It started its activities in Brazil in 2014 with the acquisition of the Balkis cheese industry. Lactalis do Brasil offers consumers dairy products in a selection of brands, including Batavo, Président, Elegê, Cotochés, Poços de Caldas, Itambé and Parmalat.
Today, Lactalis do Brasil is the leader in milk collection in Brazil. Constantly expanding, Lactalis maintains 23 manufacturing units distributed in eight states (RS, SC, PR, MG, SP, PE, GO, RJ). Upon completion of the new business, it will have more than 10,900 employees in Brazil.
