Brazil approves Coke's acquisition of Matte Leao
The Brazilian Justice Ministry approved the acquisition of local bottled-tea maker Leao Junior by US beverage giant Coca-Cola. However, to avoid market concentration, Coke must sell its local Nestea brand for the deal to go through. Matte Leao is Brazil's leading maker of bottled teas. At the end of 2006, the latest data available, Matte Leao held a 45.7% share of the bottled-tea market, compared with AmBev-distributed Lipton, at 24.7%, and Nestea at 24.4%.