P&G completes acquisition of the consumer health business of Merck KGaA

CINCINNATI — Today, the Procter & Gamble Co. announced the successful completion of its acquisition of the Consumer Health business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. This move improves P&G’s over-the-counter geographic scale, brand portfolio and category footprint in the vast majority of the world’s top 15 O-T-C markets.

With this acquisition, former Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, Consumer Health president and chief executive officer, Uta Kemmerich-Keil, will be joining P&G as leader of P&G Personal Healthcare International, an organization encompassing the newly combined consumer (or O-T-C) health care businesses in Europe, Latin America, and Asia/IMEA (India, Middle East and Africa).

“Today marks the beginning of an exciting new era for P&G Personal Health Care, as we now move forward to realize the great potential of our combined businesses,” said Tom Finn, president, P&G Global Personal Health Care. “In bringing Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, Consumer Health into P&G, we have created a new health care organization that is well-positioned to enable consumers to live longer, healthier and more vibrant lives as well as drive further sales and profit growth for P&G. We are pleased to welcome the strong leadership of Uta Kemmerich-Keil into the P&G family, along with the thousands of talented people of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, Consumer Health who are transferring to P&G.”

“P&G’s global scale and strategic interest in the health and well-being of consumers provide an excellent basis for growth and expansion, and we wish our colleagues all the best for the future,” said Belén Garijo, member of the executive board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, and chief executive officer Healthcare. “This transaction marks a further step in our company’s strategic focus on science and technology.”

These new brands provide a broad range of O-T-C products to relieve muscle, joint and back pain, colds and headaches as well as products for supporting physical activity and mobility. This acquisition also provides P&G with strong health care commercial and supply capabilities, deep technical mastery and proven consumer health care leadership that will complement P&G’s existing consumer health care capabilities and brands.

As a result of the transaction, the combined entity will have an expanded position in the largest, fastest-growing segments within the consumer health market.