Top story
Nestlé has announced this morning it has divested peanut allergy treatment business Palforzia to Swiss healthcare company Stallergenes Greer.
This agreement follows Nestlé’s announcement last year that it would conduct a strategic review of Palforzia.
Nestlé will receive milestone payments and ongoing royalties from Stallergenes Greer as part of the agreement.
The transaction was closed upon signing.
Stallergenes Greer noted that peanut allergy currently affects approximately 2% of the general population of Western nations, and the prevalence of peanut allergy doubled among children between 2005 and 20152.
The difficulty of avoiding peanuts, combined with the severity of allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis, shows the need for effective treatment.
“We are delighted about this agreement with Nestlé which marks a significant milestone for Stallergenes Greer,” stated Michele Antonelli, CEO of Stallergenes Greer.
“Palforzia, with its robust efficacy and safety profile, is currently the only available approved treatment for inadvertent exposure to peanuts. By entering the food allergy space, Stallergenes Greer becomes the first allergen immunotherapy company to offer both respiratory and food allergy treatments and demonstrates its lasting commitment to provide patients and the medical community with innovative allergen immunotherapy treatments.”
“We are confident that Stallergenes Greer will take Palforzia forward and ensure this unique treatment supports patients around the world,” said Greg Behar, CEO of Nestlé Health Science. “At the same time, the divestiture allows Nestlé Health Science to focus on its core strengths and key growth drivers.”
There will be a customary transition period to ensure business continuity and give patients uninterrupted access to the treatment.
Morning update
On the markets this morning, the FTSE 100 is up 0.6% to 7,506.8pts.
Early risers include Premier Foods, up 2.5% to 123.6p, Hotel Chocolat, up 2.5% to 111.7p and Bakkavor, up 2.3% to 100p.
Fallers so far this morning include Greencore, down 1.7% to 81.4p, PayPoint, down 1.4% to 546.2p and B&M European Value Retail, down 0.8% to 569.4p.
This week in the City
We have a slightly busier week in store as the City returns from its summer holidays.
Tomorrow sees the issuance of the monthly BRC-KPMG Retail Sales figures for August. Meanwhile packaging giant DS Smith is scheduled to announced a Q1 trading update ahead of its AGM.
Wednesday brings a pre-close update from WH Smith WH Smith pre-close update.
In the US, grocery player and Ocado partner Kroger will post Q2 results on Friday.
Meanwhile the Barclays Global Consumer Staples Conference is taking place this week, with presentations from many of the sector’s major players.
No comments yet