General Mills has reached an agreement to sell its Argentina bakery and foodservice business to Grupo Bimbo, one of the world’s leading baking companies, subject to regulatory approval.
General Mills will continue to operate its growing retail food business in Argentina, including the La Salteña brand.
The sale includes the General Mills bakery and foodservice business and all associated facilities, equipment, land and inventory in Argentina – as well as employment contracts for the production and salaried staff. General Mills bakery and foodservice employs about 360 people and the company expects job impact to be minimal.
‘We would like to thank members of the Argentina bakery and foodservice team, who have performed well despite challenging conditions,’ said Sean Walker, President of General Mills Latin America. ‘Having assessed our performance in the current business environment, we have determined that we need to prioritize other growth opportunities within our Latin American portfolio.’
General Mills has operated the bakery and foodservice business in Argentina since 2001, when it took over the business as part of its Pillsbury acquisition. The portfolio includes breads, pastries, small baked goods and Medialunas, the Argentinian version of croissants.
General Mills expects to complete the transaction by May 2nd, 2016.
Source: General Mills
Schumacher will replace Alan Jope, who announced his decision to retire last September, less than a year after a failed attempt by Unilever to buy GlaxoSmithKline’s consumer healthcare business and just months after activist investor Nelson Peltz joined the company’s board.
Globally, plant-based ice creams have doubled their share of the market over the last five years, according to Tetra Pack. Pea protein and coconut milk are leading the way, but Tetra Pak cites data showing that oat-based ice cream launches have doubled in the previous year.
A myriad of so-called eco-labels are being rolled out across various F&B products, but with no gold standard or strict rules governing precisely what the logos mean and what methodology is behind them, concerns are growing that they will confuse consumers and ultimately be counterproductive.