Greencore Completes Bakkavor Acquisition After Regulatory Clearance

Did Greencore complete the Bakkavor acquisition?

Greencore completed its acquisition of Bakkavor on 16 January 2026, when the scheme became effective after the court order was delivered to the Registrar of Companies, according to the official completion update.

The transaction was structured as a UK court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement, as set out in the recommended acquisition document.

References to an expected January closing are therefore out of date: the legal effective date was 16 January 2026.

Which regulatory conditions were cleared?

The CMA merger case records that it accepted undertakings in lieu on 17 December 2025, clearing the case at Phase 1 without a Phase 2 investigation.

The agreed remedy required Greencore to sell its Bristol chilled soups and sauces manufacturing site to Compleat Food Group. Greencore said the sale of that site completed on 12 January 2026 in its transaction update.

The condition relating to the United States Hart-Scott-Rodino Act was satisfied on 2 December 2025, according to the same transaction update.

What were the Bakkavor offer terms?

The recommended offer set out 85p in cash, 0.604 new Greencore shares and one contingent value right for each Bakkavor share.

The May 2025 offer materials said this base consideration valued each Bakkavor share at 200p and implied a value of approximately £1.2 billion for Bakkavor's issued and to-be-issued share capital.

A contingent value right, usually shortened to CVR, is an instrument whose potential payment depends on specified conditions. Shareholders should consult the formal acquisition documents for the terms that applied to their holdings rather than relying on a summary.

What matters for Greencore investors now?

With completion settled, investor attention shifts from regulatory and closing risk to integration and execution. The points worth watching include:

• how effectively the two businesses are integrated;
• whether management delivers the expected operational benefits;
• the effect on margins, cash generation and debt; and
• how clearly the combined business reports its performance.

For follow-up coverage, see my later update on Greencore's profit growth and Bakkavor integration.

Bottom line

The Greencore-Bakkavor acquisition is complete, rather than merely awaiting a January closing. The CMA remedy, US antitrust condition and court process were resolved before the scheme became effective, so the investment case now rests more heavily on integration and delivery.