Kraft seeks buyers for Kandia chocolate plant

The sale of Cadbury's Romanian chocolate business, built around domestic brand Kandia and valued at over 50m euros, is a big stake for M&A consultants, on a market frozen since 2009. M&A consultants are now closely watching any move Kraft Foods makes domestically, because after acquiring its rival Cadbury, the company will put up for sale the Kandia chocolate plant, one of the biggest assets on Romania's confectionery market. Kraft has recently announced it was already seeking potential buyers for the plant. "The operations to be sold will be run and management separately from Kraft Foods Romania, in accordance with European Commission requirements. A hold-separate manager has been appointed to manage the business to be sold and who is in charge with seeking potential buyers," Doina Cavache, a Corporate Affairs Manager with Kraft Foods Romania, told ZF. The sale of Kandia could be the event of the year for the Romanian chocolate market, and consultants say there is a big chance for the deal to be sealed with a strategic investor.