Food manufacturer Universal Robina Corp. said it is acquiring Consolidated Snacks Pty. Ltd., Australia’s second largest salty snacks maker, for A$600 million or P21.34 billion to accelerate expansion in the Asia-Pacific.
URC said in a disclosure to the stock exchange subsidiary URC International Co. Ltd. would buy 100 percent of Sydney-based Consolidated Snacks in a cash free, debt-free deal.
Consolidated Snacks trades under the name Snackbrands Australia, the second largest player in salty snacks with a total market share of close to 30 percent in Australia. It produces a wide portfolio of chips, including iconic brands Kettles, Thins, CC’s and Cheezels.
URC said with the acquisition, it planned to create a wider footprint in Australia and Oceania, with SBA providing a solid anchor in the highly competitive Australian fast-moving consumer goods and retailing market.
The deal is also synergistic with URC & Griffin’s, New Zealand’s top snackfoods company which was acquired by URC in November 2014.
“URC in the past three years has started to look for strategic options on acquisitions or partnerships, given the emerging competitive challenges being brought upon by the lifting of trade barriers and the attractiveness of the region where we operate. While we continue to push for innovation as an anchor to sustain our growth, the opportunity came at the right time to acquire a company like Snackbrands,” URC president Lance Gokongwei said.
The transaction was approved by the board of directors of both companies and is expected to close by Sept. 30, 2016 subject to the approval of the Australian Foreign Investment Review Boardand fulfillment of customary closing conditions.
SBA has grown topline at a compounded annual growth rate of 7.4 percent over the past four years, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization has grown 32.6 percent over the same time.
It operates two manufacturing facilities in Sydney which are located in Smithfield and Blacktown.
URC is one of the largest food and beverage product companies in the Philippines, with a market capitalization of almost $9-billion, with a growing presence in Asean and Oceania.