The US Justice Department has given the green light to a bid from US agribusiness company Cargill to acquire a majority stake in French starch maker Cerestar.
The EU gave its approval to the deal late January, although UK competition authorities reserved the right to assess the potential impact of the sale on the UK glucose syrup market.
Cargill is to pay US$416m to acquire a 56% stake in Cerestar from diversified industrial group Montedison. The US group has indicated it would consider buying the remaining 44% of Cerestar capital by the summer.