BRUSSELS, Belgium — The European Union on Tuesday approved US consumer goods giant Kimberly-Clark $48.7-billion purchase of major health company Kenvue after it agreed to divest feminine hygiene brands in Europe to keep them affordable.
Texas-based Kimberly-Clark makes a wide range of paper and cloth products, with brands such as Huggies, Kleenex and Kotex.
Kenvue owns a broad array of consumer health brands, from Neutrogena and Listerine, to the painkiller Tylenol and Nicorette.
The European Commission, the EU's powerful competition regulator, said the acquisition "as initially notified, would reduce competition in the markets for the supply of tampons in particular in Czechia, Estonia, and Slovakia".
To address the concerns, Kimberly-Clark offered to sell all its tampon and other feminine hygiene brands in the European Economic Area, which includes the 27 EU countries as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
The brands covered are Kotex including the Lidie sub-brand, Camelia, and Record, the commission said in a statement.
The EU said it approved Turkish company Dilek's purchase of the brands.
"Kimberly-Clark's commitment to divest its feminine hygiene brands, including Kotex, Camelia and Record, will preserve competition, choice and affordable prices for women," EU competition chief Teresa Ribera said in a statement.
