Chiquita Brands International has acquired most of the equity interests in Scipio GmbH & Co – a German partnership that owns Atlanta AG.

Atlanta is the primary distributor of Chiquita products in Germany and Austria and has been the company's largest European customer for several years.

The acquisition is subject to certain conditions, such as regulatory approvals in Germany and Austria and satisfactory agreements with Atlanta and Chiquita's lenders, but it is expected the deal will close in the early months of 2003.

Cyrus Friedheim, Chiquita's chief executive officer, said: 'Atlanta has operated successfully in Germany for more than a century. As part of the overall review of Chiquita's operations begun earlier this year, we concluded that Chiquita can enhance Atlanta's performance by acquiring control and getting closer to its business.

'We believe that by leveraging the knowledge and expertise of both companies, we can boost Atlanta's profitability and improve Chiquita's long-term position in these important European markets.'