Keurig Dr Pepper said Monday that it would acquire the European coffee company JDE Peet’s for roughly $18 billion in the latest mega deal by food companies trying to stay a step ahead of changes in consumer demand.

After completing the acquisition, Keurig Dr Pepper plans to combine its coffee business, which includes its namesake single-serve coffee pods, with JDE Peet’s and spin it into a new company. Keurig Dr Pepper would leave behind its mammoth beverage business, whose brands include not only Dr Pepper but Sunkist, Snapple, 7UP and others.

Keurig Dr Pepper said the deal, which would need to be approved by shareholders and regulators, was expected to be finalized in the first half of 2026.

The two-step transaction is aimed at effectively undoing the multibillion-dollar combination of Keurig and Dr Pepper announced in 2018. That deal was meant to create a beverage giant with the capacity to distribute hot and cold drinks to customers, while saving money.

But in the past several years, the coffee industry has slowed significantly, amid surging coffee bean prices and softening demand. As a result, the coffee business has become a drag for Keurig Dr Pepper.

A number of food companies have announced or considered deals in recent years.

In July, the Italian candy company Ferrero said that it would acquire the cereal giant WK Kellogg in a $3.1 billion deal. Kraft Heinz, a behemoth with $26 billion in annual revenue and a portfolio of condiment, lunch meats and frozen potato brands, has been weighing its own deal to break up a merger announced in 2015.