Eswatini Dairy Takes Over Swazi Milk

SIDVOKODVO based Swazi Milk project has new owners after 100 per cent of the company’s shares were acquired by Eswatini Dairy.

This acquisition is one of about 10 of those recently approved by the Swaziland Competition Commission (SCC), the Commission states in its second quarter newsletter.

The new acquirer, Eswatini Dairy, is described by SCC as a newly formed company wholly owned by the Old Mutual Swaziland Agricultural Fund.

The Fund is an investment vehicle and has three partners; being Old Mutual Life Assurance Company of South Africa (OMLACSA), the Public Service Pensions Fund (PSPF), and the Eswatini National Provident Fund (eNPF).

Swazi Milk is a privately owned company incorporated in accordance with the company laws of Eswatini and is involved in the business of dairy farming.

The firm produces raw milk and delivers it to its only customer, Parmalat Eswatini (Pty) Ltd. SCC states that in approving this acquisition, the products of the firms were considered and it was concluded that the relevant market is the production of raw milk in Eswatini.

“As a result of the transaction, Eswatini Dairy will merely replace Swazi Milk in the relevant market,” SCC states.

The Commission assured that this acquisition will neither disrupt shares in the relevant market nor market concentration, countervailing power and barriers to entry.

This transaction, therefore, was unlikely to result in the substantial lessening or prevention of competition in the country’s dairy industry, hence SCC unconditionally approved this transaction. Source: Swazi Observer