Fyffes corrects merger information
The Dublin-based firm said statements made the Cutrale Group and Safra Group — from which an unsolicited rival takeover bid was received and subsequently rejected by Chiquita — contained inaccurate information.
The key points of the Fyffes presentation are:
* Fyffes has a proven track record in growing its business and has more than 50 successfully integrated acquisitions during the tenure of current management.
* Fyffes has long-standing relationships with growers going back 40 years and a proven track record of guaranteeing highest quality products for consumers.
* Fyffes business is far less volatile than Chiquita or others in the industry as evidenced by the fact that 74% of Fyffes European banana volume is sold through contracted sales.
* Cutrale/ Safra have deliberately ignored the fact that the approval of the combination requires a special majority of Fyffes shareholders and there can be no certainty that a sufficient number of Fyffes shareholders will vote in favour of the combination if Chiquita has adjourned its meeting to negotiate a contrary transaction with Cutrale/ Safra.
Last month, Chiquita announced its intention to continue with the planned merger with Fyffes having rejected a $611m (€465.47) takeover proposal from Cutrale/ Safra.
Fyffes last week announced it had identified a further €15m worth of synergies from the proposed merger and upped its profit forecast from €30-€35m to €38-€42m.
