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Cadbury CEO hoping for long shot Hershey merger

By
Josh Kosman
Published Jan. 13, 2010, 5:00 a.m. ET

Cadbury’s CEO hinted that he might be open to a merger with Hershey — but sources close to the Pennsylvania chocolate company warn it might be too late for such a union.

“If anyone puts a compelling value proposition on the table, structure is not important,” said Cadbury chief Todd Stitzer in an interview with The Post after the company again publicly rejected a hostile, $17 billion bid from Kraft.

When asked about Hershey specifically, Stitzer said, “I think that’s for Hershey or anybody else to present to Cadbury.”

However, a source close to Hershey said the company is less interested in a merger than an outright acquisition of the British candy maker, with the Hershey board expected to decide within days whether to put together a bid to buy Cadbury.

Hershey’s board is undecided, while the Hershey Trust, which controls the company’s voting shares, wants to move forward. Pennsylvania’s attorney general would need to weigh in as well, as per state law, and sources said they have no idea how that will shake out.

Hershey has until Jan. 23 to submit a bid.

Stitzer’s comments come as it looked as if one possible suitor might be dropping out of the hunt. A report in The Wall Street Journal said Italian chocolate maker Ferrero was dropping out, though a source close to the company told The Post a final decision hasn’t yet been made.