US dairy group Dean Foods has informed that it has sold UK organic business Rachel's to France's Lactalis. A spokesperson for Dean Foods confirmed the deal with Lactalis, one of Europe's largest dairy processors and owner of brands including President and Galbani.



Dean Foods reportedly hired advisers in late May to look into the sale of Rachel's. The US group acquired Rachel's in 2004 when it bought the company's owner, Horizon Organic Dairy.

Dean Foods said  that it wants to focus on the parts of its business that give "the greatest return" to investors after agreeing to sell UK organic business Rachel's.

Erin Swanson, an analyst at Morningstar in the US, said the deal suggested Dean Foods wanted to focus on improving its core assets: "Competitive pressures within the dairy category have obviously intensified, and as a result, Dean is working to offset some of the strain by improving its cost structure by eliminating redundancies, closing facilities, and streamlining distribution and production. While we do not believe that the recently announced sale of Rachel's will move the needle on Dean's financial results, this transaction indicates to us that the dairy processor is focused on improving core categories and brands within its existing portfolio."

source: just-food.com