Itochu to Buy Dole Fruit Juice

By CnAgri2012-10-23 14:31:32 Print

Recently American Dole announced it had been negotiating with Itochu and may sell its packed food and Asian raw food sector to the latter. Dole informed it had not signed a final agreement with Itochu yet and is still discussing with other potential buyers on asset selling, and the negotiation is not limited to the two sectors only.

It was learnt Itochu targets Dole’s global canned fruit and fruit juice processing. The acquisition would cost 1.7 billion US dollars and the agreement should be signed before the end of the month, whereas the transaction shall be accomplished before April 2013.

Data reflects the global canned fruit and fruit juice processing account for 40% of the total sales revenue of Dole (7.2 billion US dollars in 2011). The sector generated a deficit in 2010 due to the sluggish economy in both Europe and the Middle East.

From “China Soft Drink Market Monthly Report”