Carlsberg’s £3.3bn deal to buy J2O maker Britvic has been approved by a High Court judge.
The Danish brewery, which also owns brands such as 1664 and Brooklyn, announced plans to create a single integrated beverage company called Carlsberg Britvic following the takeover.
Britvic, based in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, employs around 4,500 people and also produces Robinsons and Tango squash.
Judge Hildyard sanctioned the buyout during a short hearing Wednesday, saying the project “could and should be approved.”
The companies announced the deal in July, saying it would create an “enlarged international group” that could expand into “multiple beverage sectors.”
Andrew Thornton KC, of Britvic, said in written submissions that the company was “the largest supplier of branded still soft drinks and the second largest supplier of soft drinks in Britain”.
Britvic holds an exclusive license with its US partner PepsiCo to manufacture and sell brands including Pepsi, 7up and Lipton Ice Tea in the UK, which Mr Thornton told the court would continue after the takeover.
At the hearing in London, it was announced that the deal would see Britvic taken over by Carlsberg UK Holdings Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Carlsberg A/S, which Mr Thornton described as “one of the largest international brewing groups” with market capitalization. of 118 billion Danish kroner (£13 billion).
The acquisition was approved by Britvic shareholders last August, and the Competition and Markets Authority gave its approval in December.
