On 24 October 2013, Danone and The Abraaj Group announced a partnership agreement whereby Danone will join Abraaj in the acquisition of Fan Milk International (“Fan Milk”).

The Abraaj Group had previously announced its agreement to acquire 100% of Fan Milk through one of its funds in June 2013. Abraaj and Danone will now respectively acquire a 51% and 49% stake in Fan Milk International. Under the agreement, Danone will in the coming years gradually acquire a controlling stake in the business.

With 2012 sales of around €120 million, Fan Milk is the leading manufacturer and distributor of frozen dairy products and juices in West Africa. Since its establishment over 50 years ago, Fan Milk has grown rapidly through a unique distribution network and currently operates in the markets of Ghana, Nigeria, Togo, Burkina Faso, Benin and Ivory Coast.

The in-house legal team of Danone was led by Alison Hughes and Aurélie Daligand assisted by Isabelle Le Personnic (avocate).

Danone was advised by a team from Herbert Smith Freehills LLP, coordinated by Hubert Segain (partner) and Cyril Deniaud, assisted by Sophie de Labrouhe and Evelyne Girio for the corporate aspects, Nina Bowyer and Rebecca Major (partners), assisted by Jeremy Impey for the English law aspects and due diligence in the English-speaking African countries, Bertrand Montembault (partner), assisted by Salimatou Diallo (Of Counsel) for the due diligence in the French-speaking African countries, Ntube Sone (Of Counsel) and Emma Rohsler (Of Counsel) for the employment law aspects, and Olivier Haas (Of Counsel) for the intellectual property aspects.

Stibbe, represented by Gérald Origer (partner) and Claire-Marie Darnand, advised on Luxembourg law matters.

The Abraaj Group was advised by the Dubai office of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP.

Hubert Segain commented: "We are pleased to have assisted Danone with this transaction, which is a further demonstration of the growing interest of French investors for Africa and the strength of our firm's M&A practice in the region. The Paris office has been involved in Africa deals for more than thirty years and has formed close ties with local counsel, while developing our expertise in local and regional legal systems. We were also able to assist Danone from our Paris office on both French and English law aspects."