Following the successful sale of its chilled foods and bakery business Brookes Avana, it has been predicted by experts that Premier Foods’ spreads business will be the “next logical disposal”.
The sale of the spreads business, including the brands Hartley’s Jam and Haywards’ pickles, has been in the pipeline for some time already.
We reported in October that due to its spiralling debts, which stood at £950 million at the time,
Premier Foods had plans to sell off some brands to generate some much needed cash. Adviser Spayne Lindsay was hired to manage the sale process for the spreads business, thought to be worth £80 million.
With plans to raise at least £200 million from brand sales, the £30 million generated from the recent sale of Brookes Avana to 2 Sister’s Food Group goes some way to meeting this target.
Premier Foods’ chief executive officer Michael Clarke commented on the deal to Insider Media: “The sale of Brookes Avana underlines our commitment to focus the business on growing a smaller number of brands.”
Premier Foods spreads should prove to be attractive to buyers, with its well-known brand name, its own factory and strong presence in the market.
