Birds Eye £6bn sell-off

THE company behind Birds Eye in the US, Pinnacle Foods, bagged itself a £6.1bn sale to Peter Pan peanut butter maker Con ag ra Brands yesterday.

Creating a consumer goods group with £8.4bn in sales, the deal will put the combined company behind only Nestle in the rankings of the world’s largest frozen foods businesses. Pinnacle had been holding talks with $15bn New York-listed Conagra for several months.

Including debt, the deal values Pinnacle at £8.3bn. The company’s shareholders will be handed £32.79 in cash and 0.65 Conagra shares per share.