Tate & Lyle PLC ("Tate & Lyle") announces that it has today entered into an agreement for the sale of its monosodium glutamate (MSG) production unit in France to Ajinomoto Co., Inc. ("Ajinomoto"). The sale is conditional on approval by the competition authorities of a number of countries.
The transaction will be the sale of the shares in Orsan S.A. ("Orsan"), held by Amylum France, a subsidiary of Tate & Lyle. These shares represent 80.39% of the issued capital of Orsan (this percentage will rise to 87.68% by the time of completion due to a pre-completion reorganisation of Orsan). Ajinomoto is the minority shareholder with, currently, 19.61% of the shares in issue (12.32% by the time of completion). Orsan operates the MSG plant adjacent to the Amylum France wheat processing plant in Nesle. The Orsan and Amylum France operations have been fully segregated so Amylum France will not be affected by the sale operationally, although it will continue to provide utilities, feed stock and other services to Ajinomoto under long term agreements.
The sale excludes Orsan’s 51% shareholding in Orsan Guangzhou Gourmet Powder Company Limited ("Orsan China") which produces MSG in China.
At 31March 2002, Orsan S. A. (excluding Orsan China) had a total net asset value of £42 million and losses before tax attributable to these net assets in the 12 months to 31 March 2002 amounted to £6.5 million. In the six months to 30 September 2002, the business broke even. Proceeds of the sale will be used to reduce Group debt.
The anticipated loss on disposal will be £14.5 million (which includes £9.1 million of goodwill previously written off to reserves)
Larry Pillard, Tate & Lyle PLC Chief Executive comments: "The disposal is another step in Tate & Lyle's ongoing strategy to divest of non-core or underperforming businesses and product lines."
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About Tate & Lyle:
Supported by our 160-year history of ingredient innovation, we partner with customers to provide consumers with healthier and tastier choices when they eat and drink. We are proud that millions of people around the world consume products containing our ingredients every day.
Through our expertise in sweetening, fortification, and texture, we develop ingredient solutions which reduce sugar, calories, and fat, add fibre and protein, and provide texture and stability in categories including beverages, dairy, bakery, snacks, soups, sauces, and dressings.
We have more than 3,500 employees working in around 57 locations across 39 countries. Science, Solutions, Society is our brand promise and how we will achieve our purpose of Transforming Lives Through the Science of Food. By living our purpose we believe we can successfully grow our business and have a positive impact on society. We live our purpose in three ways, by supporting healthy living, building thriving communities and caring for our planet.
Tate & Lyle is listed on the London Stock Exchange under the symbol TATE.L. American Depositary Receipts trade under TATYY. In the year to 31 March 2023, Tate & Lyle revenue from continuing operations totalled £1.75 billion. For more information, please visit https://www.tateandlyle.com or follow Tate & Lyle on Linkedin, X (Twitter), Facebook or YouTube.
