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Campbell's Sells Godiva
Soup maker gets $850M, will focus on core businesses
By Wesley Oliver
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Posted Dec 21, 07 11:59 AM CST
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(Newser)
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To ensure that its bottom line stays “M'm! M'm! Good,” the Campbell Soup Company sold its upscale Godiva chocolate brand yesterday for $850 million. Yildiz Holding of Turkey beat out Starbucks and Hershey’s to nab the Belgian chocolatier, which racks up $500 million in annual sales, the New York Times reports. The sale will help Campbell’s recover from a 7.2% drop in its first-quarter net.
Campbell’s sold Godiva to turn its attention to its core businesses of soups and snacks. The luxury chocolate maker, which Campbell's bought in 1967, didn’t seem to square with the company’s new healthy-eating initiative. Godiva will be part of Yildiz's Ulker Group, Turkey’s largest producer of consumer goods.