Unilever to sell frozen foods business

09/02/06 Unilever will put the majority of its Frozen Foods businesses in Europe up for sale including the Bird’s Eye and Iglo brand. It decided to retain its Frozen Food operations in Italy.

The news came as Unilever - which also makes products such as Sunsilk shampoo, Dove soap and Knorr soup - unveiled a 28% rise in annual profits.

Unilever’s review of its frozen food business, which was announced in September 2005, looked at all the possibilities for the business. The review concluded that a strategy to grow the businesses would not deliver satisfactory value for Unilever. Unilever concluded that its great frozen food brands could prosper better under other ownership and that divestment was the best option. It also concluded that now was a good time to consider divestment as it would be likely to lead the expected future consolidation in the frozen food sector.

Patrick Cescau, Group Chief Executive, said: “Deciding to put the majority of our European Frozen Food business up for sale has been a tough call. It has been a successful business for us over many years, we’ve built some great brands for consumers with memorable advertising, and they’ve created real value for our shareholders.

“However, although we have made great progress in increasing profitability in recent years growth has been harder to come by. After an exhaustive review we have decided that the best way for us to create value is by selling the majority of the European Frozen Food businesses”, Cescau said.

The Italian Frozen Food business will continue to operate as part of the Unilever business. Cescau said that the Italian Frozen Food business was inherently attractive with good growth prospects. “It is our biggest single business in Italy and its retention plays an important role in future trade relations in that country. It is also an important source of innovation and technology in the attractive frozen meals segment that is proving so successful in the US”, he said.