Sydney: Clifford Chance is advising Mondelez International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDLZ) on the sale of most of its grocery business in Australia and New Zealand (excluding Philadelphia cream cheese) to Bega Cheese Limited (ASX: BGA) for AU$460 million.
The sale will see Australian company Bega Cheese acquire the iconic VEGEMITE brand and other grocery brands such as ZoOSh and Bonox, as well as a number of products that use the Kraft brand under licence including peanut butter, nut spreads, processed cheese slices, ambient cheese spread, mayonnaise, parmesan cheese, Kraft Easy Mac and Kraft Mac & Cheese. Bega Cheese will receive a licence to the Dairylea brand for use in Australia and New Zealand.
The transaction is led by a cross-border team of partners: Robert Crothers (London), Sarah Jones (New York) and Richard Graham and Dave Poddar (Sydney). Intellectual Property advice is provided by partner Vanessa Marsland (London) and Imogen Clark (London) is advising on Employment and Pensions.
Mondelez International, Inc., is a global snacking powerhouse, with 2015 net revenues of approximately US$30 billion. It is a world leader in biscuits, chocolate, gum, candy and powdered beverages, with billion-dollar brands such as Oreo, LU and Nabisco biscuits; Cadbury, Cadbury Dairy Milk and Milka chocolate; and Trident gum.