Dutch food group Royal Numico said today it has signed an agreement for the sale of its two of its European supplement brands to Kernpharm, the Netherlands-based healthcare company.
The two brands, Colon Clean and Pharmafood, are sold on the Dutch and Belgian markets.
The sale of these brands is in line with Numico's strategy to focus on its core activities, namely babyfood, clinical nutrition and the US supplements firm GNC, and to divest the European nutritional supplement activities, which was announced with the release of quarterly group results in November 2002.
Veghel-based Kernpharm has been present in the Benelux OTC (over-the-counter) market for the last 40 years, with brands such as Trachitol, UltraVit supplements and homeopathic medicines.
Numico, one of the world's largest vitamin and supplements makers, has been hit by the weak market in the US. In November it said full-year 2002 earnings before interest, tax and amortisation (EBITA) would be between €420-440 million, down from €667 million in 2001.