(Bloomberg) -- Kerry Co-Operative Creameries Limited shareholders voted to back a deal to buy the dairy processing arm of Kerry Group Plc Monday.
The proposed transaction, valued at €500 million ($525 million), was supported by 82% of members at a special meeting. The deal is set to deliver around €1.4 billion of value to all members as part of a share exchange, according to a statement from the Co-Op, pending the final approval of Kerry shareholders at an extraordinary general meeting Thursday.
After the deal was proposed in November, Kerry said in a statement it would mean the group is better positioned to focus on core strategies, becoming a pure play global business-to-business taste and nutrition company. It’s a boon for the Co-Op too, as Kerry Dairy Ireland generated almost €1.3 billion in the 2023 fiscal year, according to a Kerry statement from November.
Under the terms, the Co-Op will initially buy 70% in Kerry Dairy Ireland, while Kerry will retain a 30% interest. The agreement involves call-put option arrangements which will transfer the remaining 30% to the Co-Op in the forthcoming year. It also includes seven manufacturing facilities and over 1,500 employees, the November deal proposal stated.
“Today’s acceptance commences a journey that will ultimately lead to the full ownership of Kerry Dairy Ireland, one of the leading dairy businesses in the country,” James Tangney, Chairman of Kerry Co-Op, said in a statement, “while it also releases c.85% of Kerry Co-Op’s Kerry Group shares into the hands of our members to be retained or sold by each of them at a time of their choosing.”
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