Italian coffee maker Luigi Lavazza has sole rights to consider the acquisition of Carte Noire coffee business from Mondelez International, as part of its contractual agreement with the latter.
Lavazza was quoted by Reuters as saying: "On the basis of contractual agreements Lavazza will have the opportunity to evaluate exclusively the new proposal."
Mondelez, along with D.E. Master Blenders, initially considered the sale of Grand Mere and L'Or French coffee brands.
However, later the companies announced the plan to sell Carte Noir coffee brand instead of L'Or and Grande Mere brands in order to allay the concerns of European regulatory authorities about the merger of Mondelez's coffee business and D.E. Master Blenders.
Lavazza had bid over $680m for the L'Or and Grand Mere brands, and was raising cash for the acquisition.
However, Lavazza has now "put aside cash for acquisitions and now is exploring options to buy Carte Noire," the news agency reported, quoting a source.
EU antitrust regulators claim that the proposed merger would reduce competition for roast and ground coffee in France, Denmark and Latvia, as well as for filter pads in France and Austria.
Meanwhile, Lavazza has also agreed to sell over 50% of its stake to Keurig Green Mountain for over $624m.
Image: Luigi Lavazza engages in producing, roasting, and packaging roast and ground coffee. Photo: courtesy of dan / freedigitalphotos.
