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CVC is closing in on a deal for the food ingredients division of International Flavors & Fragrances, valuing the business at about $4bn, as private equity groups move to acquire underperforming divisions of big corporates.
The Amsterdam-listed private capital group is set to beat other buyout groups for the business unit that produces sweeteners, emulsifiers and other ingredients used in industrial food production, according to people familiar with the matter.
IFF, which is listed in New York, launched a sale process for the division last year. The ingredients unit has recently been hit by weakening demand for plant-based proteins.
CVC’s swoop for the industrial ingredients producer comes as private equity firms increasingly plot to carve out underperforming divisions of large corporate groups.
Other big private equity carve-outs have recently included Advent’s $4.8bn buyout of Reckitt’s cleaning products division last year and CD&R’s €15.5bn deal in 2024 to buy Sanofi’s consumer medications business.
Higher interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty have made it harder for the industry to rely on leverage and economic growth to drive returns.
Last summer IFF, which produces components of food products such as ice creams and snacks, consumer fragrances and cleaning products, announced a strategic review of the food ingredients division.
The company was at the time executing a turnaround plan for the division. In the last quarter of 2025 IFF reported net sales of $802mn for the food ingredients unit, down 4 per cent from the previous year amid sluggish demand for alternative proteins, emulsifiers and sweeteners.
The unit returned to growth in the first quarter of this year, however, with net sales up 3 per cent on the year before.
The large US deal would follow a move by CVC to overhaul its private equity leadership across the Atlantic last year after some of its deals in the region faced difficulties.
CVC declined to comment. IFF did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Wall Street Journal was the first to report that a deal was near.
