Compagnie Fruitière, grower of fruits in the African, Caribbean and Pacific area, came to the decision with Dole Food, producer and marketer of high-quality fruits and vegetables, to part ways after 21 years of confederation. On Monday, May 27th the two companies released a statement sharing that Dole had sold its minority interest back to the majority shareholder, ending the partnership.
The press release from the two companies described the division as a matter of the different goals the two companies hold.
“Dole and Compagnie Fruitière have jointly decided that they will better pursue their growth objectives separately in the future,” the press release said.
Even though this piece of news from the two major companies may seem largely disconcerting, the future looks bright for both Dole and Compagnie Fruitière. Also mentioned in the press release was the hopeful future that the two high-quality fruit and vegetable sellers would likely join in more minor deals.
“The termination of the partnership at shareholder level does not exclude that both companies may continue to cooperate commercially as supplier or customer to each other if, when and where it would be to their mutual benefit,” Dole wrote in the press release.
While this change was unanticipated, it should not be a huge surprise, especially after Dole’s recent restructuring of the company. Just a week before Dole parted ways with Compagnie Fruitiere, the company announced the closing of one of its vegetable-processing facilities in Gonzalez, CA.
