Unilever PLC

The UK Competition and Markets Authority has opened a Phase 1 investigation into the proposed $65 billion merger between McCormick & Company and Unilever's food business, with a deadline of November 11, 2026, for its initial decision. The regulator will assess whether the transaction could reduce competition in UK food markets, and if it finds concerns the deal could face a deeper Phase 2 review or potential remedies. The transaction would combine McCormick's spices and sauces with Unilever brands including Knorr, Hellmann's, French's and Frank's RedHot, with Unilever and its shareholders expected to own 65% of the combined company and McCormick shareholders 35%. The deal values Unilever's food business at nearly $45 billion and McCormick at about $21 billion, and Unilever's food business generated nearly €13 billion of revenue in 2025, more than one-quarter of Unilever's €50 billion of total revenue, with 53% of food sales coming from emerging markets. Unilever would receive $15.7 billion in cash from the transaction, advancing its strategy of focusing on beauty, personal care and home products.

Unilever and McCormick & Co. have decided to seek a buyer for the Colman's mustard brand, ahead of their planned $44.8 billion deal to combine most of Unilever's food business with McCormick. The decision to market Colman's was made to proactively address potential competition concerns from the combination, which will house Unilever brands like Knorr and Hellmann's alongside McCormick's Schwartz and French's. Under the deal, Unilever and its investors will receive a mix of McCormick stock, equating to 65% of the combined business, with Unilever shareholders expected to own 55.1%, McCormick shareholders 35%, and Unilever 9.9%, plus $15.7 billion in cash. The combined company will be led by McCormick CEO Brendan Foley and CFO Marcos Gabriel, and the deal excludes Unilever's food assets in India, Nepal, and Portugal, as well as its lifestyle nutrition, Buavita, and Lipton ready-to-drink operations.

Magnum Ice Cream Company has welcomed a US court decision that significantly narrows a lawsuit brought by former Ben & Jerry's independent directors over the ice-cream brand's activism and governance changes. Judge Kevin Castel of the federal court in Manhattan on Friday dismissed seven of the ten counts and trimmed another, while holding that Magnum, the Amsterdam-headquartered ice-cream business created from Unilever's spin-off last year, should stand as the main defendant in place of the FMCG conglomerate. The case was filed by former Class I directors linked to Ben & Jerry's independent board, accusing Unilever and Magnum of breaching commitments dating back to the UK-listed group's 2000 acquisition of the US ice-cream brand, under which Ben & Jerry's retained unusual protections around its board structure, social mission and foundation. Two claims that remain in full relate to previous settlement agreements with Unilever, and a further claim that partially survives relates solely to an ongoing governance dispute, including allegations tied to missed payments under a 2022 settlement over the sale of Ben & Jerry's trademark rights in Israel. Magnum said the decision to drop Ben & Jerry's from the case rightly demonstrates that the former directors had no right to sue on behalf of Ben & Jerry's, which is thriving under TMICC's ownership, and that the judge has ruled only on whether there is legal basis for the claim to proceed, not on their merits.