Borden sells US cheese op

Mid-America Dairymen, the largest dairy co-operative in the US, is to purchase Borden Foods’ domestic processed cheese concern. With annual sales of US$250 million, the business makes branded and own label products. It operates out of a factory in Plymouth, US, which Mid-America Dairymen will also purchase.
For the buyer, the deal is reported to represent part of its long-term strategy to gain a major foothold in the retail cheese market. It is already well established in the restaurant and institutional cheese sectors. For the seller, the disposal of the business forms part of a rationalisation programme. It also means an exit from the US dairy industry after 140 years of activity, although it retains dairy concerns elsewhere in the world.