Unilever today (1 December) confirmed it has sold UK snacks business Graze to German confectionery group Katjes International.
The financial terms of the agreement have not been disclosed. The sale is expected to be finalised in the first of half of 2026.
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Last week, Sky News reported Katjes was in advanced talks to acquire Graze for around £35m ($46.2m).
Unilever acquired Graze in 2019 from private-equity firm The Carlyle Group. At the time, Sky News claimed the consumer goods company had paid around £150m for the brand.
In a statement from Unilever, the FMCG said under its leadership “Graze has transformed its profitability and has continued to deliver growth in the retail channel”.
Unilever said it is “sharpening its portfolio for long-term growth and scalability”, adding that this includes “pruning the portfolio where relevant”.
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By GlobalDataThe statement added: “Graze has good potential for future growth and development, which will be better realised under new ownership by Katjes International,and the Candy Kittens Group, given their category expertise and complementary product portfolio.”
Katjes acquired UK vegan-confectionery business Candy Kittens in 2019.
Graze originally started as a subscription-only service selling boxes of healthier snacks centred on nuts and seeds.
Bastian Fassin, managing shareholder of Katjes International said: “Graze is one of
the leading healthy snacking brands in the UK.
“With its strong brand awareness and strategic positioning, Graze is a perfect fit for our strategy to continue growing with strong consumer brands.”
Last month, Reuters reported Unilever was weighing up whether to sell UK brands Marmite, Colman’s and Bovril.
Unilever offloaded its pasta sauce retail range in Germany earlier this year to Italian food producer Casalasco Group.
It also announced the sale of meat-free brand The Vegetarian Butcher in January.
In October, Katjes acquired a 25% stake in German cookie-dough business SD Sugar Daddies for an undisclosed sum.
