BUBS Australia (ASX: BUB), one of Australia's leading infant milk formula producers, has had a strong 2017 riding the wave of Chinese interest in Australian milk formula products.
The company closes out 2017 with the completion of several key acquisitions, leaving them well poised to continue dominating in the new year.
This morning the company announced the completion of the acquisition of NuLac Foods, a major producer of goat milk.
The acquisition sees Bubs become Australia's only vertically integrated producer of goat infant formula.
The deal is reportedly worth up to $39 million, which sees Bubs acquire NuLac, the owner of the CapriLac and Coach House Dairy brands and a 49.9 per cent interest in the dairy facilities producing NuLac Foods products.
Bubs has also completed the acquisition of 49.9 per cent of New Zealand Nutritional Goat Company Limited.
Bubs Australia's Chairman, Dennis Lin, says the acquisition is a significant strategic milestone for the company.
"Following completion, Bubs becomes Australia's only vertically integrated producer of goat infant formula, a major step in our strategic ambitions and one that brings a new level of optionality on our journey," says Lin.
"We now have a clear pathway to provenance as an end-to-end producer, together with the intellectual property and manufacturing expertise to underpin the growth in our strong domestic business and leverage our exposure to the Chinese market."
In November, chief executive of Bubs, Nicholas Simms, said the transaction was "transformative" for the milk formula producer, and a pivotal step to dominating the Chinese market.
"This transformative acquisition is underpinned by a compelling rationale that would see Bubs controlling its own destiny," says Simms.
"This has been uppermost in our minds on our strategic journey and this transaction represents an important step in our efforts to expand our domestic and China business."
NuLac's CapriLac is a market-leading brand of goat dairy products, including a range of goat's milk yoghurts, milk and milk powder, all made using milk from their farms in Gippsland, Victoria and Hamilton, New Zealand.
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Business News Australia
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