Flora Food Group owner KKR to kick off €7bn auction

Private equity firms have begun circling the maker of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter as its long-standing owner kicks off an auction which could value it at about €7bn (£6bn).

Sky News has learnt that KKR, which acquired the spreads business now known as Flora Food Group from Unilever nearly a decade ago, is preparing to launch a sale process for the company in the coming weeks.

Its management team, led by chief executive David Haines, is understood to be working with its own advisers on the situation.

Money latest: What rising inflation likely means for interest rates

Analysts named financial sponsors such as Platinum Equity and One Rock as likely suitors for Flora Food Group, which last month reported a slight decline in half-year earnings.

Flora Food Group's scale means that some private equity firms are likely to partner with one another on bids, according to insiders.

With a history dating back to 1871, the company's portfolio also includes Becel ProActiv, BlueBand, Country Crock and Violife.

Initially rebranded as Upfield after its sale to KKR, the company came close to being taken over by ADQ, an Abu Dhabi-based sovereign wealth fund, in 2024.

Those talks were abandoned after the two sides failed to agree a price.
Read more from Sky News:
No need for new laws on AI, says Nvidia boss
EU offers Canada chance to become first 'associate member'

The spreads division was one of a number of major businesses offloaded by Unilever in recent years, which have also included Magnum Ice Cream and Lipton Teas and Infusions, the owner of PG Tips.

KKR drew up plans to make its entire portfolio plant-based by 2025, but later ditched the proposal amid shifting consumption habits.

KKR and Flora Food Group declined to comment.

(c) Sky News 2026: Flora Food Group owner KKR to kick off €7bn auction