FILE PHOTO: L'or coffee packets are seen at a Carrefour supermarket in Brussels, Belgium, May 22, 2020. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir/File Photo

By Juveria Tabassum

(Reuters) -Keurig Dr Pepper said on Monday it will buy Dutch coffee company JDE Peet's for $18.4 billion at a time when the highly competitive global coffee industry grapples with steep commodity costs, and people look for healthier sodas.

Deal-making in the packaged food industry has been robust, with companies looking for consolidation and help to weather inflationary pressures and shifting consumer preferences.

Here's a list of the biggest M&As in the industry over the past few decades:

Date Merger

Dec. Britain's Cadbury Schweppes Plc agreed to buy U.S.

17 sweet maker Adams, owner of Trident and Dentyne

2002 chewing gums and Halls cough drops, for $4.2

billion from drugmaker Pfizer, making it the

world's largest confectionery group.

Nov. Kraft Foods completes its acquisition of

30, France-based Group Danone's global biscuit business

2007 for 5.3 billion euros ($7.2 billion), including the

LU family of brands, expanding the largest North

American food maker's foothold in Europe and

emerging markets.

April Mars created the world's largest confectionary

29, company with its $23 billion acquisition of chewing

2008 gum manufacturer Wm Wrigley Jr Co. Combined, the

two companies held 14.4% of the global

confectionary market in 2006.

Jan. Nestle bought Kraft Foods' North American frozen

5, pizza business for $3.7 billion and ruled out an

2010 offer for Cadbury.

Jan. Kraft Foods bought British candy maker Cadbury for

19, about $19.6 billion, creating the world's biggest

2010 confectioner, marking the largest European food and

beverage deal on record, according to Thomson

Reuters data.

Aug. Kraft Foods said it would spin-off its grocery

4, business to focus on its snacks unit, which was

2011 seeing strong growth in emerging markets.

April Nestle bought U.S. drugmaker Pfizer's infant

. 23, nutrition business for $11.85 billion, beating out

2012 French rival Danone as both sought to gain a strong

foothold in the baby food market.

Oct. Kraft Foods completes the split of its business,

1, creating two separate companies. Mondelez

2012 International, a global snacks company, and Kraft

Foods Group, which would be the North American

grocery products firm.

July H.J. Heinz Co, backed by Warren Buffett's Berkshire

2, Hathaway Inc, completed its purchase of Kraft Foods

2015 Group Inc in a $46 billion deal, creating the

third-largest food and beverage company in North

America and fifth largest worldwide.

The new company, Kraft Heinz, was expected to have

about $28 billion of annual revenue from brands

such as Oscar Mayer, Jell-O and Heinz ketchup.

Aug. Mondelez International abandoned its pursuit to

29, acquire Reese's Peanut Butter Cups maker Hersheys

2016 after the company turned down its $23 billion

cash-and-stock offer. The deal would have created

the world's largest confectioner at the time,

overtaking Mars.

Jan. Swiss food group Nestle, also the world's biggest

18, packaged-food company, agreed to sell its U.S.

2018 confectionery business to Italy's Ferrero, maker of

Nutella spread and Ferrero Rocher, for $2.8

billion.

Jan. Keurig Green Mountain struck a deal worth more than

29, $21 billion to combine with soda maker Dr Pepper

2018 Snapple Group Inc to form a North American drinks

company, Keurig Dr Pepper

Feb. Cheerios cereal maker General Mills bought Blue

23, Buffalo Pet Products Inc for nearly $8 billion,

2018 foraying into a fast-growing pet food market to

counter declining sales of processed foods, as

consumers turned more health conscious.

Dec. Nestle SA agreed to sell its U.S. ice cream

11, business to Froneri in a deal valued at $4 billion,

2019 moving control of brands including Häagen-Dazs to a

joint venture the Swiss group set up in 2016.

June Cadbury parent Mondelez International bought energy

21, bar maker Clif Bar & Company for $2.9 billion, as

2022 the company continued to consolidate its global

presence.

April Mondelez International broadened its presence in

25, Mexico with a $1.3 billion purchase of breadmaker

2022 Grupo Bimbo's confectionery business, Ricolino.

Dec. Mondelez sold its gum business, which housed brands

19, such as Trident and Dentyne, in developed markets

2022 to European gum and confectionery maker and Mentos

parent Perfetti Van Melle Group for $1.35 billion

March U.S. packaged food maker Campbell Soup completes

12, the acquisition of Rao's Homemade-owner Sovos

2024 Brands in a $2.33-billion deal.

Aug. Snickers-maker Mars buys Pringles owner Kellanova

14, in a nearly $36 billion deal.

2024

Sept. Cheerios maker General Mills sold North America

12, yogurt business to French dairy firms Groupe

2024 Lactalis and Sodiaal in a $2.1 billion deal.

Oct. PepsiCo bought Siete Foods parent Garza Food

1, Ventures for $1.2 billion, beefing up the Frito-Lay

2024 owner's snacking portfolio amid a shift to

private-label brands among cost-conscious

consumers.

Dec. General Mills bought Whitebridge Pet Brands' North

21, American premium cat feeding and pet treating

2024 business, which includes Tiki Pets and Cloud Star

brands, for $1.45 billion.

July WK Kellogg agreed to be bought by the owner of

10, Ferrero Rocher in a deal worth around $3.1 billion,

2025 as the cereal maker struggled with weakening

consumer demand.

Aug. Keurig Dr Pepper said it will buy Dutch coffee

25, company JDE Peet's for $18.4 billion in cash, and

2025 the combined firm will split its beverages and

coffee units as it looks for a firmer stronghold

over the global coffee and North America

refreshment beverages markets.

Source: Company releases, Reuters articles

(Reporting by Juveria Tabassum and Anshi Sancheti; Editing by Maju Samuel and Sahal Muhammed)