McCormick & Co. Inc. said Wednesday it had entered into an agreement with a company in India to market and sell its basmati rice and other food products in the country.
The Hunt Valley spicemaker expects to finalize the deal with Kohinoor Foods Ltd. later this year.
McCormick said it will invest $115 and hold an 85 percent interest in the partnership. It will finance the deal through cash and debt. The joint venture will be named Kohinoor Specialty Foods India Private Ltd.
Kohinoor sells its products in 350,000 retail stores in India and expects annual sales of $85 million this year.
Under the deal, the companies will keep a factory for packaged food products and 275 employees that currently work for Kohinoor.
The venture will bring McCormick's investments in the country to more than $150 million.
The deal is part of a strategy by McCormick to expand in emerging markets, which the company expects to contribute 12 percent of sales by 2015. Emerging market sales last year contributed 9 percent.
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