Food & Beverage Industry Snapshot: 2009 in review

There are few, if any, industries that did not feel some effect from the overall turmoil within the U.S. economy last year. Food and beverage was no exception. The 2009 landscape was shaped not only by rising commodity prices, fluctuating fuel and input costs and safety concerns, but also by broad changes in consumer behavior; as shoppers faced their own financial challenges, their food and beverage selections increasingly reflected a stronger emphasis on both value and health.

As a result, while many companies struggled, those well-positioned to take advantage of these trends not only proved resistant to the effects of the recession, but even managed to maintain some positive momentum.

Despite a decline in M&A activity from the prior year, 2009 still saw the completion of 1,159 deals within the industry. In many cases companies made acquisitions either because the target was highly distressed or because it had a strategic motivation to sell.

The Corporate Finance practice of Grant Thornton LLP monitors the key factors affecting the food and beverage industry and focuses on the trends in specific sectors. Their experience with M&A transactions spans several hundred food and beverage industry clients, ranging from global conglomerates to middle-market companies in all sectors of the industry.