Mergers and Acquisitions IntroAt the beginning of the 21st century the future of the food and beverage industry seemed to be unclear. With a slow growth rate of just 2% per year, food and beverage companies were desperate for ways to increase sales and profits. Many companies such as Kellogg's, Sara Lee, Quaker Oats and others considered merger as a solution and thus the beginning of the 21st century was marked by mega mergers worth $30.5 billion. One of the largest mergers was between PepsiCo and Quaker Oats in August 2,2001.