Hershey to acquire all outstanding shares of Godrej Hershey Joint Venture

The Hershey Company announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire the 49 percent stake in Godrej Hershey Ltd. that it does not own, primarily from Godrej Industries Ltd. (“Godrej”) and another minority shareholder. Including the assumption of about USD 47.6 m in debt, which is already consolidated by Hershey as the majority shareholder, the company will own the Maha Lacto and Nutrine candy brands and the Jumpin and Sofit beverage brands as well as the related manufacturing facilities.

The transaction is expected to close by the end of the third quarter and the new entity will transition to use the name Hershey India as it becomes a wholly owned subsidiary of The Hershey Company. As part of the transaction, the minority shareholders will receive an undisclosed cash consideration. For the year ended December 31, 2011, the Godrej Hershey joint venture had net sales of about USD 80 m. The portion of the net loss for the full year attributable to Hershey was approximately USD 7 m. When the Godrej Hershey joint venture was announced in 2007, annual net sales were about USD 70 m.

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