KP Snacks sale agreed

A sale of the British business, KP Snacks, has been agreed, marking the latest sale of a United Biscuits' brand.

The firm, which makes KP nuts and Hula Hoops crisps among other snacks, has been sold to German company Intersnack in a deal worth around £500 million. Individuals with knowledge of the sale told the Financial Times that the deal was sealed at £504 million.

They added that Intersnack beat a private equity fund to access the sale at the last stages, noting that there had been several other potential bidders tracking the auction.

The German company's executive chairman, Maarten Leerdam, said in a statement: “We believe in the power of iconic, local hero brands, and we aim to leverage these strengths for further expansion.”

United Biscuits is seeking a sale for a number of brands as its private equity owners, Blackstone and PAI Partners, are looking for a partial exit from their investment having put aside plans to sell the entire company.

United Biscuits as a whole posted revenues of £1.3 billion in 2011, a five per cent increase from 2010. Meanwhile, KP Snacks has seen an increase in its revenues of nearly four per cent since 2008.

However, the company is less than confident about the future and remains wary that the “pressure on household budgets at a time of increasing price pressure from escalating world raw material prices has further weakened consumer confidence”.

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