Kellogg to acquire controlling stakeholder of Brazil’s Parati for $429m

17-Oct-2016 - Last updated on 18-Oct-2016 at 11:42 GMT

The Parati acquisition is Kellogg's largest in Latin America.

Kellogg has entered an agreement to acquire Ritmo Investimentos, controlling shareholder of Brazilian food group Parati to expand its presence in global emerging markets.

The $429m all-cash transaction is expected to be completed by late 2016. The acquisition is Kellogg’s largest in Latin America, according to the release.

Parati offers a wide range of regional brands, including Minueto, Zoo Cartoon, and Hot Cracker Biscuits, which together makes up approximately half of the group’s business. Its net sales are expected to be about $190m at current exchange rates.

John Bryant, Kellogg’s chairman and CEO said in a statement, “Brazil is the largest economy in Latin America and this acquisition will allow us to accelerate our growth and improve our margins in the region. This means more growth for the core Parati Group business and our well-loved Kellogg brands.”

The Parati acquisition marks Kellogg’s fourth emerging market acquisition in the last two years. During that time, Kellogg has acquired companies in each of its international regions, including Bisco Misr and Mass Food Group in Egypt, and a 50% stake in Multipro in Nigeria and Ghana.

“The addition of Parati further enhances the company’s emerging market growth strategy,” Kellogg said.