VEVEY, SWITZERLAND — Nestle SA is exploring strategic options for the Palforzia peanut allergy treatment business it acquired in 2020. The decision was made after slower than expected adoption by patients and doctors, according to the company.
Palforzia was part of the Nestle Health Science business unit’s $2.6 billion acquisition of Aimmune Therapeutics, Inc., Brisbane, Calif., in Aug. 2020. It is a Food and Drug Administration-approved treatment to help reduce the frequency of allergic reaction to peanuts in children aged 4 to 17. Other treatments under development by Aimmune Therapeutics include solutions for multi-nut allergies, exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, and several microbiome therapeutics for recurrent C. difficile and ulcerative colitis.
The company did not set a timeline for the strategic review.
Nestle also said that going forward it will sharpen the Health Science unit’s focus on consumer care and medical nutrition.During a September presentationat the Barclays Consumer Staples Conference in Boston, Francois-Xavier Roger, Nestle’s chief financial officer, said a goal of the company going forward is to improve the unit’s operating margin so it is not dilutive to Nestle’s total business.