Fonterra joint venture agrees to buy Pharma lactose business

Fonterra’s 50:50 joint venture with Royal FrieslandCampina, DMV-Fonterra Excipients (DFE) is buying Royal FrieslandCampina’s pharmaceutical lactose business and manufacturing unit, FrieslandCampina Domo-Pharma. The total transaction value is NZ$106 million, of which Fonterra’s share is NZ$53 million.



DFE will buy the FrieslandCampina Domo-Pharma pharmaceutical grade lactose products range.

The transaction, which is likely to complete in March 2010, is subject to regulatory and other approvals.



Fonterra’s Managing Director for Ingredients, Andrei Mikhalevsky, said the transaction would add value to Fonterra by creating a larger scale pharmaceutical lactose business.



Synergies would be created by combining the two companies’ knowledge bases and R&D capabilities. These would benefit the shareholders of both Fonterra and Royal FrieslandCampina, as well as customers, Mr Mikhalevsky said.