Nestle to buy Uncle Tobys

1049 Views 23 Replies 10 Participants Last post by zach24, May 29, 2006

Lightning~Bolt

Discussion Starter · May 23, 2006

http://www.theage.com.au/news/business/nestle-to-buy-uncle-tobys/2006/05/23/1148150241513.html

Nestle to buy Uncle Tobys
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AdvertisementFood group Burns Philp and Company is set to sell snack food business Uncle Tobys to Nestle Australia Ltd for $890 million.

"Burns Philp has today entered into an agreement with Nestle Australia Ltd to sell its Australian Uncle Tobys nutritious snacks, breakfast cereals and soups business for a total price of $890 million," the company said in a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange.

The company said the sale excluded the Bluebird Foods salty and wrapped snacks business in New Zealand, for which it continued to assess its strategic options.

Burns Philp said the sale of Uncle Tobys was subject to the approval of regulators and shareholders.

''The sale to Nestle is expected to be completed shortly after the satisfaction of these conditions,'' the company said.

Burns Philp appointed Deutsche Bank to advise on the sale of Uncle Tobys and Bluebird brands in January, a month after the successful $2.1 billion float of its bakery and spreads division, Goodman Fielder.

At the time, analysts speculated that the sale of both brands could fetch between $975 million and $1.2 billion.

Rival food companies such as Arnott's, Unilever, Cadbury Schweppes and Pepsi had been mentioned as possible contenders for the business, along with private equity players flush with cash.

In February, Burns Philp reported a first half profit of $581.1 million, which was down 37 per cent on the previous corresponding half, under new accounting standards.

Its snack foods division posted $199.4 million in revenue during the six-month period amid heightened competition, down from $208.3 million in the same period a year earlier.

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Another big one getting snapped up!

btw is Uncle Toby's an all Australian company? Or foreign owned? Can't remember.

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1 - 20 of 24 Posts

auslankan

· #2 · May 23, 2006

Another sad day for the Australian food industry.
I think the local food industry is already 97% overseas owned but its still terrible to see another icon Aussie brand go to the multi nationals.
It wont be long before we own nothing!

Avatar

· #3 · May 24, 2006 (Edited)

Thorpy says that's 'fully sik' and it is ... literally!

Lightning~Bolt

Discussion Starter · #4 · May 24, 2006

auslankan said:
Another sad day for the Australian food industry.
I think the local food industry is already 97% overseas owned but its still terrible to see another icon Aussie brand go to the multi nationals.
It wont be long before we own nothing!

My sentiments exactly, how long before we are 100% foreign owned, it going to happen, not a matter of if, but when.

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AtD

· #5 · May 24, 2006

^ Not allowed. ASX listed companies must have x% local ownership. If you have money in a well diversified super fund, you may even 'own' shares in companies like Kraft and Nestle anyway. It's a global market.

Lightning~Bolt

Discussion Starter · #6 · May 27, 2006

AtD said:
^ Not allowed. ASX listed companies must have x% local ownership. If you have money in a well diversified super fund, you may even 'own' shares in companies like Kraft and Nestle anyway. It's a global market.

ah ok thanks, thats a relief then, some of Australias greatest companies keep getting screwed by all these international companies.

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Boeing747

· #7 · May 27, 2006

Well that's just f***** stupid! Are we going to sell everything we got? Lets just sell the whole country to a cheap cereal company...

hno: >(

The Olderfleet

· #8 · May 27, 2006 (Edited)

Two major issues:
1. Appalling that another Australian company will be foreign-owned.
2. The purchase of Uncle Toby's by Nestle is anti-competitive. Nestle already has too greater share of the food industry IMHO.

I hope this is blocked outright by the ACCC, just like it blocked the sale of Woodside a few years ago. (It was not in the national interest for foreigners to own Woodside, apparently).

Well, at least some brands have come back to Australia. You will be pleased to know that these two iconic brands are now Australian owned again:

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nagelixin

· #9 · May 28, 2006

Id give the 'Uncle Toby's' brand about 5 years left of its life, before all products are branded Nestle.

12 months all products will be Nestle Uncle Tobys before it is phased out.

Boeing747

· #10 · May 28, 2006

We won't give away Fruchocs!!! Never!!!

zach24

· #11 · May 28, 2006

lets not forget that as of 2001 Australian companies purchase more foreign companies (in dollar terms) than foreign companies takeover Australian companies. (i.e. Australia's foreign investment per year is greater than foreign ownership in Australia each year)
If we have this attitude should Australian companies be excluded from taking over international firms?
i guess we wouldnt have companies like Macquarie, Westfield, CSL, Cochlear. Rinkler, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, Resmed, Babcock and brown, Amcor, Multiplex, Toll, and many others (that earn almost 90% of revenue overseas) and have all grown due to international takeovers

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The Olderfleet

· #12 · May 28, 2006

nagelixin said:
Id give the 'Uncle Toby's' brand about 5 years left of its life, before all products are branded Nestle.

12 months all products will be Nestle Uncle Tobys before it is phased out.

Remember Peter's Ice-Cream. Unless you are in WA, it is Nestle Peters with the Nestle part prominant.

As for the ratio of foreign company takeovers versus Australians taking over, I see this as two separate issues. I am happy to see Australian companies take over foreign companies if their respective governments think it is okay. But that does not mean we have to put up with the same thing here. There needs to be come control over this... balance is the key.

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zach24

· #13 · May 28, 2006

lol

AtD

· #14 · May 28, 2006

The Olderfleet said:
As for the ratio of foreign company takeovers versus Australians taking over, I see this as two separate issues. I am happy to see Australian companies take over foreign companies if their respective governments think it is okay. But that does not mean we have to put up with the same thing here. There needs to be come control over this... balance is the key.

Yeah, who wants foreign investment?

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zach24

· #15 · May 28, 2006

well foreign investment is a result of globalisation - the fact is Australia now invests approximately 30% more than what is invested in this country by foreigners - drop foreign investment the world will treat us the way we treat them - we will have zero access to emerging markets and be faced with no investment opportunties apart from a mature market (australia) capable of producing lower growth than what could be achieved in emerging markets.......... yeah great - who cares who owns assets - as long as the growth rate of overseas assets owned by Australians is greater than Australian assets owned by foreigners then we become wealther

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AtD

· #16 · May 28, 2006

^^ I was being sarcastic.

zach24

· #17 · May 28, 2006

believe me im all for Australian owned companies - however if its not efficient and resources could more effectively be employed elsewhere then I couldnt care less.

I'm happier to see Macquarie owning airports, tollways around the world, CSL being the largest blood plasma group in the world, Westfield the largest property firm in the world and BHP Billiton being the worlds largest mining company and Asia-Pacifics largest company and many other leaders like this than have Uncle Toby's remain in Australian hands

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zach24

· #18 · May 28, 2006

AtD said:
^^ I was being sarcastic.

yeah i know - i was adding to my previous post

AtD

· #19 · May 28, 2006

Fair enough.

Cee_em_bee

· #20 · May 28, 2006

What i'm more scared of is foreign ownership of our land. the Japanese and Chinese prominently, they've done it in the states and New Zealand as well.

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