PEPSICO'S QUAKER OATS ACQUISITION APPROVED

BARBARA MURRAY

PURCHASE, N.Y. -- Beverage giant Pepsico, Purchase, N.Y., recently agreed with Atlanta's Monarch Co. -- which is buying Pepsi's All Sport brand -- to leave Gatorade out of Pepsi's bottling system for 10 years.

On Aug. 1, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission approved Pepsi's $13.9 billion acquisition of Quaker Oats, Chicago, but this approval was issued independently of Pepsi's agreement with the Monarch Co.

A five-member FTC inquiry voted 2/2, with one abstention, thus falling one vote short of the majority needed to block the deal.

Two FTC commissioners, Sheila F. Anthony and Mozelle W. Thompson, called the merger "regrettable," saying that allowing Pepsico to further consolidate its soft drink position by acquiring Quaker Oats and its popular Gatorade products "raises obvious and significant concerns that competition will be lost in the highly concentrated soft drink industry."

Chuck Beebe, soft drink buyer at Brown & Cole, Bellingham, Wash., told SN "I don't think it will really change things much for the retailer, except in promotions. It might streamline operations a little bit for me. It may reduce the number of people or companies we will have to deal with.

"I think the biggest beneficiary will be Pepsi. They'll be controlling over an 80 share nationally with Gatorade. Their All Sport is the smallest player in the sports drink arena, so the deal will take Pepsi from the tiniest share in the category to the largest." Coke's PowerAde has a 10 to 12 share, he added.