Danone Sends Second Purchase Offer to Lifeway Foods

Less than two months ago, Danone North America sent an offer to purchase the rest of Lifeway Foods stocks it doesn't already own. Danone has been a shareholder for more than 20 years and bid $25 per share, roughly $283 million.

The Board of Directors of Lifeway Foods didn't accept the offer because it determined that the initial proposal substantially undervalued Lifeway and was not in the best interests of the company, its shareholders, and other stakeholders.

Last week, Lifeway Foods received a revised proposal from Danone, which upped the offer to $27 per share in cash. According to the Schedule 13D amendment filed today with the US Securities and Exchange Commission disclosing the revised proposal, Danone beneficially owns approximately 23.3% of Lifeway's outstanding common stock.

Lifeway's board of directors will review and evaluate the revised proposal to determine the course of action that it believes is in the best interests of the company, its shareholders, and other stakeholders.

Lifeway has been embroiled in a family dispute. Edward Smolyansky, one of Lifeway Foods’ biggest shareholders, has acquired a dairy plant in the US after a rift between family members. Smolyansky is engaged in a proxy campaign after he and his mother Ludmilla filed a consent statement to unseat the company’s current board of directors, including CEO Julie Smolyansky, his sister.

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