General Mills to buy Brazilian food maker Yoki

US company General Mills has finalised plans to buy Brazilian food maker Yoki. 

Headquartered in São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil, Yoki specialises in producing snacks, convenience foods meals, basic foods ( such as grains and beans), and seasonings.  The family-run company has been operating since 1960 and employs more than 5,000 people.

Boxes of General Mills cereals sit on the shelf at Santa Venetia Market on March 18, 2011 in San Rafael, California. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)

Chris O’Leary, General Mills’ executive vice president and chief operating officer, International, said, “We are delighted to add Yoki’s talented people and strong brands to General Mills’ growing international business. Yoki adds key capabilities and geographic scale that will accelerate our growth in Brazil. We plan to focus on building the strong Yoki and Kitano product portfolio, expanding our current Haagen-Dazs and Nature Valley businesses in Brazil, and introducing additional General Mills brands in this important market over time.”

Mitsuo Matsunaga, Yoki’s chief executive officer, said, “I am very pleased to see our Yoki brands and businesses joining General Mills. Our family is confident that General Mills' global capabilities, combined with Yoki's outstanding employees and brand portfolio, will lead to accelerated growth in Brazil for years to come.”

The news comes after General Mills announced it was cutting its global work force by 850. 

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