From Real Agriculture:
Merck has acquired Antelliq, the parent company of Allflex, maker and distributor of digital animal identification, traceability, and monitoring products.
All outstanding shares of the company were acquired for approximately 2.1 billion Euros, the company says. Merck will also assume Atelliq’s debt of 1.15 billion euros, which it intends to repay shortly after the deal is closed. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of this year.
“Antelliq’s people and products complement (the Merck Animal Health) portfolio by adding market-leading digital products, extending the range of solutions we can provide our customers, and further driving the growth of our business,” says Kenneth C. Frazier, chairman and chief executive officer for Merck.
Merck Animal Health is an animal health business, offering pharmaceuticals, vaccines and other value-added technologies and services for livestock producers. Merck sees an increasing use of digital technology in animal agriculture, driven by the growing demand for protein, food traceability and food safety.
In a 12-month period ending September 2018, Antelliq’s ear tag and monitoring solutions for dairy cattle brought in 360 million euros in sales.
“Merck has a strong and growing animal health business, and we are delighted that our superior offering of technology, products and services, as well as our global relationships, together with Merck, will bring additional value to our customers,” says Stefan Weiskopf, DVM, chief executive officer, Antelliq.