Ajinomoto Co., Inc. to Acquire All Shares of Ajinomoto General Foods, Inc.
Held by Mondelēz for JPY 27.0 Billion
Aiming to Expand the Scale of Business and
Grow by Harmonizing Each Business Division
TOKYO, February 27, 2015 - Ajinomoto Co., Inc. (“Ajinomoto Co.”) and Mondelēz International, Inc. (“Mondelēz”) of the United States have agreed to Ajinomoto Co.’s acquisition of all shares held by Mondelēz in Ajinomoto General Foods, Inc. (“AGF”), a 50/50 joint venture between the two companies, for JPY 27.0 billion. Mondelēz holds the shares through its subsidiary Kraft Foods Holdings Singapore Pte. Ltd. Ajinomoto Co. and Kraft Foods Holdings Singapore Pte. Ltd. concluded a share purchase and sale agreement today. AGF handles a wide range of beverage products including coffee, tea and cocoa, and has an innovative corporate culture. By making AGF a consolidated subsidiary, Ajinomoto Co. will expand the scale of its business and accelerate growth by harmonizing each business division of Ajinomoto Co. and AGF.

AGF was established in 1973 as a joint venture between Ajinomoto Co. and General Foods Corporation (currently Mondelēz) of the United States. In the coffee business in Japan, AGF has created new markets for 3 in 1 and other products and has continued to provide new value adapted to consumer needs. With both marketing and technological capabilities, AGF holds the top share in Japan in the home-use coffee products market (excluding canned coffee) and has been expanding sales in the restaurant and institutional-use business. Currently, AGF provides a wide range of high-quality, delicious beverage products in addition to coffee, including tea and cocoa. Ajinomoto Co. and Mondelēz have been holding ongoing discussions on AGF’s operating format. Motivated by the current global reorganization of Mondelēz’s coffee business, Ajinomoto Co. had considered making AGF a consolidated subsidiary, which led to the agreement.

As part of its aim to become “a genuine global specialty company,” Ajinomoto Co. is reinforcing its business structure and working to expand into adjacent business domains (products adjacent to existing product domains and adjacent markets) for rapid growth. After making AGF a consolidated subsidiary, Ajinomoto Co. intends to expand AGF’s business scale together with its current management and employees. Both companies will reinforce their business structures by promoting cooperation in each division and generate synergy in new product development and production by leveraging their common core of powdered and processed products.

Ajinomoto Co. is scheduled to acquire all shares of AGF held by Mondelēz by the end of April, 2015. Ajinomoto Co. will retain AGF’s current management structure, company name and brands after making the company a consolidated subsidiary.

The acquisition will have no impact on results for fiscal 2014.

Overview of Ajinomoto General Foods, Inc.
(1) Name: Ajinomoto General Foods, Inc.
(2) President: Keiichi Yokoyama
(3) Location: Tokyo Opera City, 3-20-2 Nishi Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Japan
(4) Established: August 1, 1973
(5) Net sales: JPY 144.8 billion (fiscal year ended March 2014)
(6) Number of employees: 1,103 (as of April 1, 2014)
(7) Business description: Manufacture and sale of beverage products
(8) Capital: JPY 3,862.7 million
(9) Equity ownership: Ajinomoto Co., Inc. 50%
Kraft Foods Holdings Singapore Pte. Ltd. 50%

About Ajinomoto Co.
Ajinomoto Co. is a global manufacturer of high-quality seasonings, processed foods, beverages, amino acids, pharmaceuticals and specialty chemicals. For many decades Ajinomoto Co. has contributed to food culture and human health through wide-ranging application of amino acid technologies. Today, the company is becoming increasingly involved with solutions for improved food resources, human health and global sustainability. Founded in 1909 and now operating in 26 countries and regions, Ajinomoto Co. had consolidated net sales of JPY 991.3 billion (USD 11.0 billion) in fiscal 2013. For more about Ajinomoto Co. (TYO: 2802), visit www.ajinomoto.com.

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