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Danone and Russian Unimilk announced Friday the signing of an agreement to merge their dairy operations in Russia and nearby states (Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Belarus).

This merger will create a new entity that will represent a turnover of around 1.5 billion euros. With 21% market share, it will be a leader in the dairy area CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States, Ed) and especially in Russia. " They will be checked at 57.5% and 42.5 Danone by current shareholders Unimilk.

In their communique, the two companies emphasize their complementarity, including their geographical location (Danone west, east Unimilk) and their products (on the segmented health Danone and core market segments for Unimilk).Unimilk is currently the second largest private company in the Russian dairy and infant nutrition.

"Nearly twenty years after our debut in Russia, said Franck Riboud, CEO of Danone, the creation of Unimilk Danone Danone is a strategic move in a region characterized by growth for years to come."

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