Charoen Pokphand Foods seeks to buy Iglo Group

It is reported that through the acquisition, CPF seeks to expand Birds Eye brand in eastern Europe and Asia, where frozen food business is smaller.

Private equity firms such as Bain Capital, BC Partners, Blackstone and PAI Partners are also reportedly bidding for Iglo Group.

If CPF wins the bid, Birds Eye would become the latest food brand to be acquired by a foreign company. Recently, Chinese state-owned Bright Food has entered into an agreement to acquire British breakfast cereal company Weetabix from its private equity owner Lion Capital.

Iglo Group is owned by the private equity firm Permira, which initiated the divestment of Iglo after it received unsolicited expressions of interest from several companies. Permira acquired Iglo from Unilever for €1.7bn in 2006, following which the frozen foods company launched new products into several markets.

CPF is a leading producer of animal feed and shrimp. It also has operations in the UK, where it produces Thai food for the supermarkets.