Nestle SA sold its peanut-allergy medicine business to Swiss health-care group Stallergenes Greer after the food company gave up hopes that it would become a blockbuster treatment.
The price for Palforzia, the first peanut-allergy treatment to win approval from the US Food and Drug Administration, was not disclosed. Nestle said Monday it will receive milestone payments and royalties from closely held Stallergenes. In July, Bloomberg News reported that Stallergenes had been in talks about Palforzia.
Nestle paid $2.6 billion to acquire the maker of Palforzia in 2020 as Chief Executive Officer Mark Schneider made one of his biggest forays into health. However, uptake of the new drug missed expectations and the company launched a strategic review of the therapy in November. Earlier this year, Nestle announced a 1.9 billion-franc ($2.2 billion) impairment charge on the peanut medication.
The company originally planned to complete its strategic review for the unit in the first half of 2023.
Scientists have tried for decades to find better options to treat peanut allergy, a widespread condition, without success. Palforzia is essentially peanut protein encapsulated in a pill. By exposing children to tiny but gradually increasing amounts of the ingredient, it slowly raises their sensitivity threshold.
Stallergenes specializes in allergen immunotherapies. The company has manufacturing sites in France and the US and has a presence in 19 countries, according to its website.
Nestle shares were little changed Monday morning. They have dropped 7% in the past year.
