Summary

Nestle SA had submitted a premerger application seeking clearance by the Commission for its acquisition of the nutrition business of Pfizer comprising of infant and follow-on milk & growing-up milk. The Commission noted that Nestle was already a dominant player in the relevant product markets and the said acquisition would further strengthen its position thereby raising competition concerns.

In its competition analysis, the Commission, inter alia, considered whether the merger will result in the removal of an effective competitor. In this regard, it was clarified that Pfizer has no manufacturing facility related to the brands in question and the same are only imported. It was confirmed by Nestle that it would continue to allow imports thereby ensuring availability of choice.

The merger was approved after obtaining an undertaking from Nestle that the products will continue to be available for a period of 3 years from the date of the closing of the transaction.