France’s Lactalis is in talks with Ebro Puleva over the possible acquisition of the Spanish food group’s dairy activities.

Ebro yesterday (28 January) revealed that “several” companies were interested in its dairy business, which last year generated an estimated turnover of EUR440m and represented an 8% share of the Spanish sector.

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“We can confirm that we are in negotiations with Ebro Puleva but nothing has been agreed at this stage nor have we set a timeframe for the completion of negotiations. Also, from what we understand, we are not the only interested party,” a Lactalis spokesman told just-food today.

Earlier today, Italian dairy giant Parmalat said it was not interested in bidding for the assets.

Lactalis operates seven plants in Spain, three producing milk, two specialising in cheese manufacture and two which it attained following the chilled dairy venture it forged with Nestlé in 2006 and that make yoghurts and milk-based desserts.

One of the advantages of acquiring Ebro Puleva’s dairy division would be to provide Lactalis with production facilities for speciality milk  – lactose-free, rich in vitamins, magnesium and omega 3, one analyst said.

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