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By Kopano Gumbi, CNBC Africa reporter
US beverage company PepsiCo has reached an agreement to acquire South African food company Pioneer Foods. Pepsi offered 110 R per share, which represents a 56% premium on the stock.
The transaction is one of PepsiCo's largest outside the United States. The soft drink maker has announced its intention to use South Africa as a base for its African expansion.
PepsiCo left South Africa under apartheid to return in 1994, and then applied for voluntary liquidation in 1997 after a fierce battle with world rival Coca-Cola, who lost a significant market share.
Pioneer Foods and Pepsi have a longstanding relationship. In 2006, Pioneer signed a franchise agreement with Pepsi and slowly began to reintroduce its soft drinks to the South African market.
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