EU Commission clears Mars' $36 billion Kellanova deal

The European Commission has approved Mars' $36 cardinal bid to get Pringles shaper Kellanova, it said connected Monday, aft opening a full-scale probe into the takeover successful June, citing concerns implicit higher prices.

The takeover, among the biggest successful the snacks sector, volition bring nether 1 extortion brands ranging from M&Ms, Snickers and Whiskas feline nutrient to Pringles crisps, Pop-Tarts and Kellogg's cereals.

"The Commission has concluded that the projected transaction would not rise contention concerns successful the European Economic Area," it said successful a connection connected Monday.

The EU's enforcement limb recovered that some companies already person marketplace powerfulness successful parts of Europe, and arsenic a combined institution could nexus antithetic categories to negociate higher prices with retailers.

But, due to the fact that consumers are not truthful loyal to the companies' products similar M&Ms and Pop-Tart pastries that they would power supermarkets, the woody is improbable to summation Mars' bargaining power, the committee said.

The support from the Commission was the past regulatory hurdle the woody needed to clear, and Mars present expects it to adjacent connected December 11.

Andrew Clarke, the planetary president of Mars Snacking, said successful an interrogation connected Monday that the woody means much prime for consumers arsenic the radical volition person 9 brands with implicit $1 cardinal successful sales, up from six, "with enactment of show to instrumentality much supra $1 billion."

In presumption of the woody starring to higher prices, helium said Mars has not been immune to inflation, but looks to innovate and connection antithetic merchandise sizes to consumers.

He said successful effect to a question astir layoffs that determination "will beryllium immoderate areas of overlap we volition look at", but that Mars is looking to turn the concern and put down the brands successful the agelong run.