Hellmann’s, a brand of Unilever, is seen on display in a store in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., March 24, 2022.
March 20 (Reuters) – Unilever (ULVR.L), opens new tab is in talks to sell its foods business to smaller rival McCormick & Company (MKC.N), opens new tab, a potential deal that would unite the British company’s Hellmann’s and Knorr brands with the U.S. spice maker’s Cholula hot sauce.
The deal talks come months after the consumer goods giant spun-off its Magnum Ice Cream Company (MICCT.AS), opens new tab division, as part of efforts to focus on its personal care and beauty businesses.
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Here’s a breakdown of the two food businesses’ major brands and sales:
UNILEVER FOOD BUSINESS | MCCORMICK | |
Market Value | Enterprise value of about $34.71 billion, according to Barclays estimates | $14.51 billion, according to LSEG data |
Popular brands | Knorr soups and spices, Hellmann’s mayonnaise and condiments, Horlicks drink mixes, Colman’s mustard, Marmite spread, Maille mustard, Kissan sauces and jams, Bovril beef extract | Cholula hot sauce, French’s condiments and sauces, Frank’s RedHot sauces, Stubb’s sauces and marinades |
Latest annual revenue | 12.93 billion euros ($14.96 billion) | $6.84 billion |
Latest annual profit | 2.75 billion euros | $1.07 billion |
Major markets | Products of parent sold in over 190 countries including Nigeria, India, China, U.S., Canada, UK, France | Brands sold in over 170 countries including U.S., Canada, China, India |
Operations and offices | The conglomerate has offices across 119 locations worldwide with no breakdown of Foods only locations | Across 29 countries |
Major plants and facilities | Burton in the UK, Cochin in India | Maryland and Louisiana in the U.S., Shanghai in China |
Here’s how the businesses’ leadership and strategies look like:
UNILEVER FOOD BUSINESS | MCCORMICK | |
Leadership | Heiko Schipper, Foods Business Group President | Michael A. Conway, CEO |
Business model | Does not have segments within food unit but the cooking aids and condiments categories drive a chunk of sales. Other offerings include Mini Meals, and Unilever Food Solutions. | Operates via two segments- Consumer and Flavor Solutions |
Shareholder activism in the past few years | Activist shareholder Nelson Peltz revealed a stake in parent Unilever in 2022, pushing for streamlining at foods unit operations | None |
Acquisitions and disposals | Parent spun-off Ice cream brand Magnum and sold non-core food assets including snack brand Graze and plant-based meat brand The Vegetarian Butcher in 2025. It has cut product assortment by 25% since 2019. | Bought Reckitt Benckiser’s (RKT.L) food unit in 2017, Cholula Hot Sauce in 2020 |
(SOURCES: Reuters stories, companies’ annual reports and websites)
($1 = 0.8643 euros)
