Key takeaways:<\/p>\n
Competition and Markets Authority sets November 18 deadline
\nUnilever plans to sell Colman\u2019s brand amid antitrust concerns
\nDeal cleared a key U.S. regulatory hurdle on October 5
\nMaryland-based McCormick\u2018s Schwartz brand may be part of remedy package<\/p>\n
Britain\u2019s competition watchdog told consumer goods group Unilever and Maryland-based spice maker McCormick they must address competition concerns in recipe mixes and sauces or face an in-depth investigation of their planned $65 billion food deal.\n<\/p>\n
The Competition and Markets Authority said on Wednesday the companies could offer remedies before a November 18 deadline to avoid a detailed investigation.<\/p>\n
An in-depth review can result in a deal being cleared, cleared subject to remedies such as asset sales, or blocked.\n<\/p>\n
Unilever said in March it would combine its food business with Frank\u2019s RedHot and French\u2019s mustard maker McCormick to create a company worth around $65 billion in the second-largest food sector deal on record.\n<\/p>\n
Hunt Valley-based McCormick\u2019s United Kingdom consumer business includes herbs, spices and sauces sold under the Schwartz brand, while Unilever sells a range of food products including dry sauces and meal mixes under the Knorr, Maille and Colman\u2019s brands.<\/p>\n
Following an initial review, the CMA said it was concerned the deal could reduce competition in the supply of dry ingredient mixes, such as chili con carne mixes, and dry sauces, such as parsley sauce, to U.K. retailers.\n<\/p>\n
The regulator said Nestle\u2019s Maggi, Premier Foods\u2019 Bisto and supermarket own-brands provide only limited competition in these markets.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is an expected step in the regulatory process, and we are working constructively with the CMA on a suitable remedy,\u201d a Unilever spokesperson said. McCormick also said it was working constructively with the CMA.\n<\/p>\n
Under CEO Fernando Fernandez, Unilever is reshaping its portfolio to focus on faster-growing personal care and beauty businesses. It spun off its ice cream business last year.\n<\/p>\n
Mustard makes the cut<\/p>\n
The CMA said English, French and American-style mustard are separate markets because shoppers do not view them as close substitutes. It therefore found no competition concerns from the combination of McCormick\u2019s French\u2019s brand with Unilever\u2019s Colman\u2019s and Maille mustards.\n<\/p>\n
Unilever said it had already decided to sell the Colman\u2019s brand, which also makes mint sauce and recipe mixes, to \u201cproactively\u201d address potential competition concerns and that talks with potential buyers were progressing well.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cThe reason Unilever was looking at selling Colman\u2019s was always for antitrust reasons, so now that it isn\u2019t an area of concern for the CMA, it probably doesn\u2019t get sold,\u201d said Quilter Cheviot analyst Chris Beckett.\n<\/p>\n
Instead, Beckett said McCormick\u2019s Schwartz products in the U.K. could be part of a remedy package.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cMore broadly, we continue to make good progress on regulatory approvals globally, reinforcing our confidence in a timely closing,\u201d a spokesperson for McCormick said.\n<\/p>\n
The deal cleared a key U.S. regulatory hurdle on October 5 when it was granted approval under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, Federal Trade Commission records show.\n<\/p>\n
Unilever\u2019s shares were little changed and McCormick\u2019s shares were down 2.1% at 1438 GMT.\n<\/p>\n
Separately, the CMA on Wednesday raised concerns about Dulux paint maker AkzoNobel and U.S. peer Axalta\u2019s proposed $25 billion merger in the U.K. vehicle refinish coatings market, giving the companies a week to offer remedies or face a deeper investigation.\n<\/p>\n
Reporting by Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru. Additional reporting by Tuhina and Juveria Tabassum. Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee and Mark Potter.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Key takeaways: Competition and Markets Authority sets November 18 deadline Unilever plans to sell Colman\u2019s brand amid antitrust concerns Deal cleared a key U.S. regulatory hurdle on October 5 Maryland-based McCormick\u2018s Schwartz brand may be part of remedy package Britain\u2019s competition watchdog told consumer goods group Unilever and Maryland-based spice maker McCormick they must address<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":86845,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[43695,3768,44763,71,8983,43696,3531,3529,3527,3530,3528,43697,10437,43698],"class_list":["post-86844","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-maryland","tag-antitrust-and-competition-law","tag-baltimore-county","tag-business-and-corporate-law","tag-food","tag-ftc","tag-hunt-valley","tag-maryland","tag-maryland-dining","tag-maryland-food","tag-maryland-grocery-stores","tag-maryland-restaurants","tag-mccormick","tag-mergers-and-acquisitions","tag-unilever"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/vive.im\/@dc\/117605742931975397","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86844","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=86844"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86844\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/86845"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=86844"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=86844"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=86844"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}