The Cornucopia Institute, an organic-food industry watchdog group, said it filed a letter with the U.S. Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission opposing the acquisition of WhiteWave Foods by French dairy giant, Groupe Danone, for about $10 billion. The deal was announced in early July.
“The deal would combine the world’s largest organic yogurt brand, Stonyfield, with Wallaby, a rapidly growing yogurt label, and the nation’s largest brand of organic milk, Horizon,” Cornucopia said in a statement. It said it was “formally challenging the acquisition based on the serious erosion of competition it would create in the consumer marketplace and the negative economic impact it would have on U.S. organic dairy farmers.”
Cornucopia said Horizon organic milk controls nearly 25 percent of the market, while Horizon’s Silk brand is a leader in plant-based beverages. Danone will be taking control of a bigger piece of the organic dairy market than has ever been controlled by a single company.
“With this acquisition we are concerned that Danone will easily be able to beat out any competition by lowering prices beyond what farmstead dairies, and more moderately sized milk processors and marketers, can withstand,” said Marie Burcham, a livestock policy analyst with Cornucopia, in the statement. Following fruits and vegetables, organic dairy products are the second-largest product segment in the organic industry. “As such a key part of the organic market, it is vital that competition remains open,” Burcham added.
In addition to the letters, Cornucopia also launched a petition drive on its website pushing for a full investigation of the proposed merger by federal regulators.