Weetabix may be sold after struggle in China

A customer places a packet of Weetabix breakfast cereal into a shopping cart at a supermarket in Slough, UK. [Photo/Agencies]

Bright Food Group Co, a majority stakeholder in the popular UK cereal brand Weetabix, is looking to sell its 60 percent stake and hired Goldman Sachs Inc to sell the British company, which is valued at about 1 billion pounds ($1.24 billion), Reuters reported.

A spokeswoman at Weetabix who requested anonymity told China Daily that it was "business as usual" and the company does not comment on rumor or speculation.

The Shanghai-based food giant said no such deal was taking place at the moment and declined to comment further.

Reuters, citing "unidentified sources", said a sales process could start in January because Bright Food struggled to crack China's market where most people prefer local hot and savory meals, such as rice or congee, for breakfast. The majority of Weetabix's sales came from the United Kingdom, where it is the second-largest cereal brand behind world leader Kellogg's.

Bright Food bought a controlling 60 percent stake in the British brand in 2012 in a deal worth 1.2 billion pounds from private equity firm Lion Capital.

At the time, the acquisition was the biggest by a Chinese company in the global food and drinks sector and the Chinese firm said it wanted to invest in the long-term development of the brand in Asia.

The news of a potential sale came after workers at the 84-year-old business voted to go on strike after the New Year in a dispute over shifts.

Thomas Wu, a Shanghai-based partner at Roland Berger Strategy Consultants, said: "At the beginning, Bright Food bought Weetabix aiming to expand its European market and bring the well-known brand with the launch of localized products to attract more Chinese consumers, but I do not see any change it has made yet."

He said: "We cannot say it is a failed acquisition as the company hardly tried to make use of Weetabix's fame and reputation to expand the market out of the UK."