McCormick plans to add London listing amid Unilever food merger

Unilever agreed, according to Reuters citing a memo, to protect employment terms for workers in its European and UK food business for two years after its planned merger with US spice maker McCormick. The protection is set to run until at least mid-2029. The deal, agreed in March, values Unilever’s Food unit at about $44.8B and the combined entity at about $65B, expected to close mid-2027 subject to approvals.

Utz UTZ.N agreed to be taken private by Germany’s Intersnack Group, with Utz’s founding families, in a deal valued at nearly $3 billion, the first U.S. acquisition for Intersnack. The article cites other family-led snack deals including Ferrero’s purchases of WK Kellogg and Power Crunch, and Mars’s $36 billion take-private of Kellanova. It notes valuation multiples and potential targets.

McCormick outlined the operating structure, executive team and planned secondary listing location for its proposed $44.8 billion combination with Unilever’s Foods business. The deal would create about $20 billion in annual revenue and is subject to UK CMA review, with completion expected mid-2027. Four divisions are Americas Consumer, International Consumer, Global Food Service and Global Flavor.

McCormick said it will seek a secondary listing on the London Stock Exchange while keeping its primary listing in New York. The move follows its agreed March plan to buy Unilever’s food business for £33.8bn, expected to complete mid-2027. Unilever will receive about $15.7bn cash upfront, with cost savings of about $600m annually. The UK CMA is consulting on competition.

The UK Competition and Markets Authority opened an initial review into McCormick’s proposed acquisition of Unilever’s food business, inviting written comments until 5 Aug 2026. The CMA is assessing potential UK competition impacts and has not yet launched a Phase 1 probe. The deal would combine brands including McCormick, Knorr, Hellmann’s and Frank’s, with expected combined revenues of about $20B (2025 figures).

McCormick (MKC) agreed to merge with Unilever’s food division in a $45B deal announced in March. The transaction adds brands such as Hellmann’s, Knorr, French’s, and Frank’s RedHot. McCormick says it will reduce spice’s sales share to under 15% and lift operating margins from 17% to 21%, with closing mid-2027 at the earliest.