Merko Gida, the Turkish food and beverage producer announced on July 24 that it would establish a joint venture with French beverage group Pernod Ricard. "The final version of an agreement to set up a joint venture was approved by our management board, paving the way for the other side to sign," Merko Gida said in a statement. Merko Gida, which makes concentrated fruit juices and frozen food, and Sias-Mpa SA, a unit of Pernod Ricard, would be 50-50 partners in the new venture and would each elect two members to the new company's board. "Sias-Mpa is the world's largest concentrated fruit juice producer with a foundation of 24 production facilities in 16 countries," Merko Gida said. The new company, to be called Merko Sias Gida, will have an initial capital of 120,000 euros, Merko said, and it expects invest $1 million to upgrade equipment and lease land for a new plant in industrialised northwestern Turkey.
