The world’s biggest food company doesn’t want to make ice cream anymore

By Hanna Ziady, CNN

London (CNN) — Nestle has thawed on ice cream.

The world’s biggest food and drinks maker said Thursday that it was in “advanced negotiations” to sell its remaining ice cream business to its joint venture partner, Froneri.

Shares gained 3% in morning trade in Zurich.

The move comes as the company looks to boost sales and simplify its sprawling operations under new CEO Philipp Navratil. Navratil took over from Laurent Freixe in September, after Freixe was abruptly dismissed for failing to disclose a romantic relationship with a more junior colleague.

In full-year earnings, Nestle said it would focus on its coffee, petcare, nutrition and food and snacks businesses.

“We are focusing our portfolio on four businesses, led by our strongest brands, with prioritized resources and a simplified organization,” Navratil said in a statement.

The company is already in the process of cutting around 16,000 jobs worldwide, as it works to slash costs, including through automation and the use of artificial intelligence.

Navratil’s efforts to boost performance at the struggling Swiss multinational have been hampered by a major infant formula recall. Nestle said that stock shortages and returns of some formula products would have a marginally negative impact on its sales volumes this year.

The company recalled some batches of infant formula from dozens of countries in December, including France and the United Kingdom, after it found traces of the toxin cereulide in product samples. Cereulide can cause vomiting and diarrhea.

Nestle is not the first major food company to ditch its ice cream division. Unilever spun off its ice cream unit in December, creating the largest ice cream business in the world, known as The Magnum Ice Cream Company.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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