Nestlé Health Science Acquires Stake in Vital Foods

Created in 1991, Vital Foods has two well-established products on the market in New Zealand, Kiwi Crush and Phloe. Both products are based on a natural kiwifruit extract, and have been clinically shown to be effective against constipation.

Jul 15 2011 --- Nestlé Health Science announced the acquisition of a minority stake in Vital Foods, a New Zealand based company that specialises in the development of kiwifruit-based solutions for gastrointestinal conditions. The terms of the transaction are not being disclosed. This follows the acquisitions made in the last 12 months of Vitaflo, CM&D Pharma and Prometheus Laboratories.

Created in 1991, Vital Foods has two well-established products on the market in New Zealand, Kiwi Crush and Phloe. Both products are based on a natural kiwifruit extract, and have been clinically shown to be effective against constipation. Constipation is a common functional disorder of the gastrointestinal tract, affecting around 1 in 6 people in the general adult population in Oceania, Europe and the US.

The transaction gives Nestlé Health Science a seat on the Board of Vital Foods, providing the opportunity to help steer future product development as well as commercial strategy. Inventages, which manages Nestlé Venture Funds, has been an investor in Vital Foods for a number of years.

Luis Cantarell, Nestlé Health Science President and CEO: “We are very pleased to have a stake in Vital Foods. Their products align strongly with Nestlé Health Science’s commitment to science-based nutritional solutions for gastrointestinal health.”

Gursh Bindra, Vital Foods CEO: “We are excited to have Nestlé Health Science as a strategic investor in Vital Foods. We look forward to working with Nestlé Health Science to further develop our product range.”

Nestlé Health Science also announced the completion of its acquisition of Prometheus Laboratories Inc, a company that specialises in diagnostics and in-licensed specialty pharmaceuticals in gastroenterology and oncology. Prometheus’s diagnostics platform enables Nestlé Health Science’s nutritional solutions to be an integral part of patient care from diagnostics to disease management.