EU approves Cargill purchase of ADM chocolate business

Cargill has received the go-signal from the European Commission to acquire the chocolate business of Archer Daniels Midland Company.  It has secured the EU’s conditional clearance in addition to approvals from the US Department of Justice.

The transaction will enable the handover of ADM’s three chocolate, compound and liquor production sites in North America – Milwaukee (Wisconsin.), Hazleton (Pennsylvania) and Georgetown (Ontario) and three chocolate and compound production sites in Europe – Liverpool (U.K.), Manage (Belgium) and Mannheim (Germany) to Cargill.

The Ambrosia®, Merckens® and Schokinag® brands will be transferred to Cargill's portfolio and a total of 650 employees will join the Cargill family.

Meanwhile, ADM's industrial chocolate production facility in Mannheim, Germany will be divested, as ordered by the EU which expressed concerns regarding competition. This facility will remain a separate entity with an interim management as it awaits purchase.

"The acquisition underlines Cargill's commitment to meeting our customers' needs and constitutes a milestone for our chocolate growth strategy, strengthening our position as a leading player in the cocoa and chocolate industry," said Bryan Wurscher, president Cargill Cocoa and Chocolate North America. "The new organization will deepen our service to chocolate customers and expand our footprint and production capability significantly. Customers will benefit from a combined business with a broad range of high quality cocoa and chocolate products for confectionery, bakery, dairy, and other applications."

"We are looking forward to bringing together people with a deep passion, experience and commitment to producing excellent chocolate in our extended chocolate operations," says Jos de Loor, president of Cargill's cocoa and chocolate business EMEA and Asia. "Growing our business goes hand in hand with our commitment to securing the long-term viability of a strong and sustainable cocoa bean supply chain. With the Cargill Cocoa Promise, we are supporting progress towards a transparent cocoa supply chain, enabling farmers to achieve better livelihoods and delivering a sustainable supply of cocoa and chocolate products to meet the growing demands from customers."