Nestle, the world’s largest food company by sales, has announced it was selling part of its Spanish frozen food operation, La Cocinera brand, to prepared food company, Findus Group for an undisclosed amount. The deal, which is subject to approval by the Spanish government, will include a factory in the north of the country which produces lasagna and cheese nuggets. This deal is one in a string of strategic sales by Nestle of its fringe businesses so that the group can focus on its more profitable pet care and nutritional products divisions. In the past 18 months Nestle has agreed to sell its PowerBar business, most of its Jenny Craig diet foods business, and is actively looking to sell its frozen food subsidiary, Davigel, which produces meals and desserts for schools and restaurants. In the nine months to September 30, 2014, Nestle has seen sales for prepared foods drop 6.2% as consumer tastes are shifting away from frozen products to fresh options.
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