Online Reporter
Business Reporter
PEPSI bottler, Varun Beverages, has emerged as the leading prospective buyer for a controlling stake in Zimbabwe’s largest dairy and food processor, Dairibord Holdings Limited.
This follows a cautionary statement issued by the Dairibord board, which advised shareholders that three of its major blockholders—Equivest Asset Management, Mega Market and Mutare Mart & Exchange—had issued a joint notice disclosing that they had entered into negotiations with an unnamed third party to sell their collective shareholding.
Combined, the three entities hold a commanding block of shares representing over 51 percent of Dairibord’s issued ordinary shares, meaning that if successful, the transaction will result in a total change of control.
Mega Market is the largest shareholder in Dairibord, holding a 23,92 percent stake. This is closely followed by Stanbic Nominees, which holds 23,87 percent of the company.
Serrapin Investments is the third-largest shareholder with 12,04 percent, while Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Zimbabwe Limited holds 10,65 percent shareholding.
The Mining Industry Pension Fund rounds out the top five, holding 4,93 percent of the total stock.
The top five shareholders own 75,41 percent of Dairibord, leaving the remaining 24,59 percent in the hands of other, smaller retail and minority investors.
While the official cautionary statement did not name the buyer, market intelligence strongly points to Varun Beverages positioning itself to take over the dairy giant.
“A few potential buyers are being mentioned, but Varun Beverages has come out as the leading contender,” said a source speaking on condition of anonymity because they are not permitted to talk to the press.
Market sources, however, indicated that Varun has quietly been buying up smaller tranches of shares from open-market holders.
Another source familiar with the developments said that while Varun reportedly expressed interest in a control stake, no formal communication has been made with Dairibord management.
The source also said the stake available to Varun was still below 51 percent and the beverages giant has been mopping up shares from the open market.
Another source, however, said Varun was not the only buyer looking for a controlling stake in Dairibord.
“There are also other players being mentioned,” said the source.
Varun is an Indian-headquartered multinational and one of the largest franchise bottlers of PepsiCo products in the world outside of the United States.
The company manufactures, bottles and distributes a massive portfolio of beverages, including Pepsi, Mirinda, Mountain Dew, 7Up and Aquafina.
Varun officially entered the Zimbabwean market in 2018 with the launch of a state-of-the-art greenfield bottling plant in Harare.
Since its entry, the company has hugely disrupted the local beverage landscape through an aggressive low-cost pricing model, rapid capacity expansions and an extensive, highly visible retail distribution network.
Beyond beverages, Varun has begun expanding into the food and snacks sector—having secured a licence to manufacture and distribute PepsiCo snack brands, such as Simba Munchiez.
