Danone may acquire Catch and Aava

French food company Groupe Danone has shortlisted acquisition targets in the Indian bottled water market, including DS Group’s Catch and Sheelpe Enterprises’ Aava.
Danone, which also imports its Evian water brand in India, has been reported to be keen on increasing its presence in the beverages and dairy business in India, which are growing quickly on the back of rising incomes and the expansion of modern trade.
Danone has a stake in India’s top biscuit maker Britannia Industries Ltd.

PepsiCo Inc.’s Aquafina, Mount Everest Mineral Water’s Himalayan and Coca-Cola’s Kinley also compete in the market for bottled water, which is estimated at Rs20 billion.

Bisleri sells Maaza brand for global mkts to bottlers

The Bisleri group (Parle Exports)-promoted soft drinks company, Maaza Beverages, has sold the trademark rights of Maaza for the international markets to its bottlers, Infra Beverages in Europe and House of Spice in the US for a substantial undisclosed sum.

The group has also shut down the international operations headquartered in New York. Coca-Cola, which owns the trademark in India, is believed to have been interested in buying the rights for the international markets but failed to clinch the deal.

Maaza was launched in 1976 and was the brain child of Mr Chauhan who sold it to Coke in 1993 along with Thums Up, Citra, Goldspot and Rim-Zim and Limca. Back then, Mr Chauhan was also too dependent on franchisee bottles given that of the sixty-two bottling plants, only four were owned by the company.

Bisleri had earlier sold its mango processing business, which supplied pulp to the Maaza business, to Jain Irrigation.

Read more in The Economic Times article.

Coke to invest $250 mn in 3 years in India

Within days of acquiring vitamin water Glaceau, American giant Coca Cola today said it will invest 250 million dollars in India in next three years and said its bottling operations would turn profitable in 2008.

Most of the investment will stay within India as the required infrastructure like coolers and trucks are manufactured in India.Along with the 250 million dollars by Coke, franchises of the company's bottling operations in India are also likely to put in between 50-100 million dollars to ramp up infrastructure.

Of the 60 bottling plants in India, Coke owns 25 while 24 are owned by the franchises and the remaining are with the co-packers.The company is also open to divest in the bottling business and move towards more and more in the hands of franchises.

Tata Tea to sell 30% Glaceau stake for $1.2bn

Soft drink giant Coca-Cola today announced it will acquire US energy drink maker Glaceau, in which the Tata Group has a 30% stake, for $4.1 billion.

Tata Tea had acquired 30% stake in Glaceau last year for $677 million, and has decided to sell its stake for $1.2 billion. Tata Tea stock zoomed 4% today to Rs 914.

Tata Tea, in a release issued to the BSE today, said the company through its indirect UK subsidiary Tata Tea (GB) Investments had acquired 25% of the shareholding of Energy Brands Inc, USA ("EBI") and Tate Sons through its subsidiary Tata Ltd (UK) had acquired 5% of the shareholding of EBI. The aggregate consideration for the purchase of this 30% holding was $677 million based on an enterprise valuation of $2.2 billion for EBI.

Coca-Cola Company will acquire Energy Brands Inc, also known as Glacéau, and its full range of enhanced water brands including vitaminwater. The acquisition provides The Coca-Cola Company with a strong platform to grow its active lifestyle beverages.

Read more in The Business Standard article.