General Mills is reportedly looking into the potential sale of its yogurt business in North America.
According to Reuters, the US group has appointed investment banking group JPMorgan Chase to help it find new buyers for the segment.
The Nature Valley snack bars producer is hoping to get the portfolio valued at nearly ten times the asset’s annual EBITDA of around $250m, unnamed sources told the news agency.
General Mills’ yogurt range includes brands such as Yoplait, Liberté, and Ratio Food.
The company did not respond to a request for comment from Just Food at the time of writing.
In 2021, the Minneapolis-headquartered business sold 51% of its controlling interest in its European yogurts operations to co-shareholder Sodiaal, a French dairy co-operative.
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By GlobalData
As part of the deal, General Mills fully acquired Yoplait in Canada. It was also granted a reduced royalty rate to use the Yoplait and Liberté brands across North America.
The Old El Paso meal kits maker bought its stake in Yoplait in 2011. It had owned 51% of Yoplait SAS and 50% of Yoplait Marques SNC, a second entity that owns Yoplait and its related trademarks.
Sodiaal, the other shareholder in both entities, supplies milk to the Yoplait brand.
In the nine months ended 25 February, General Mills’ total net sales increased 1% to $15.1bn, while operating profits also went up by the same percentage to, to $2.6bn.
In its third quarter, the group recorded a 1% dip in total net sales, at $5.1bn. Total operating profits were up 25% to $911m.
Net sales in its North American retail unit were flat year-on-year, at $9.6m, while the foodservice segment in the region saw 3% growth.
Operating profits for the North American retail market were also flat in the nine-month period, but grew 9% in foodservice. In the third quarter they dropped 4% in retail and 1% in foodservice.
