Norton Rose Fulbright advises Parmalat Canada and its parent, Lactalis Group, on C$1.62bn acquisition of Kraft Heinz’s Canadian natural cheese division

Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has advised long-time client Parmalat Canada and its parent, the Lactalis Group, on its C$1.62bn acquisition of Kraft Heinz Canada’s natural cheese business, which includes well-known brands such as: Cracker Barrel, P’tit Québec and aMooza!

The transaction represents a significant investment by the Lactalis Group in the Canadian dairy sector. It also shows a strong commitment to Parmalat Canada’s current business, which includes nearly 3,000 employees, 16 dairy processing plants and a dedicated research and development facility. 

The large and complex transaction involved numerous Norton Rose Fulbright Canada lawyers from across a number of the firm’s practice groups and offices.

Led by Walied Soliman and Paul Fitzgerald, the Toronto-based team included Bruce Sheiner, Trevor Zeyl, Joseph Palmieri (Corporate, M&A and Securities); Barry Segal (Tax); Michael Brown (Investment Canada and Competition/Antitrust); Eric Reither (Commercial); Jung-Kay Chiu (Intellectual Property); Michael Lieberman (Real Estate); Nicole Sigouin, Noah Schein (Banking); and Ryan Freeman (Employment and Labour). Members from other offices included Martin Masse (Lead, Competition/Antitrust, Ottawa) and Erika Woolgar (Competition/Antitrust, Ottawa), and Martin Rochette (Pensions and Benefits, Quebec City). Andrea D’Ambra (New York), Florinda Baldridge (Houston) and Sam Sessler (Dallas) of Norton Rose Fulbright’s Global eDiscovery Services team supported Parmalat Canada and its parent, Lactalis Group, in responding to extensive information requests from the Canadian Competition Bureau.

Walied Soliman, global and Canadian chair of Norton Rose Fulbright commented:

“Parmalat has had a presence in the Canadian food and dairy industry for nearly 140 years and we were pleased to help build upon that tremendous foundation by acting as counsel on this transaction. We extend our congratulations to Parmalat and its parent, Lactalis Group, for the successful expansion of its business.”

Mark Taylor, president and chief executive officer of Parmalat Canada, commented:

“We have been working with Norton Rose Fulbright for a number of years, but this was a collaboration of a very different order and we are thankful that we could rely on a multidisciplinary team to address the numerous aspects of the transaction.”

For further information please contact:

Caroline Arbour, Editorial Advisor
Tel: +1 514.847.4723
Caroline.Arbour@nortonrosefulbright.com