Cadbury rejects Kraft takeover bid
Updated on 09 November 2009
The chocolate makers Cadbury have rejected a hostile takeover bid from the US food giant Kraft, dismissing the £9.8bn offer as "derisory".
Kraft's initial approach was rejected two months ago, but today the bid is worth even less thanks to falling share prices.
Cadbury's chairman said it was not "remotely close" to reflecting his company's true value, and appealed to shareholders to stand firm.
At stake is not just British jobs, but Cadbury's new ethical commitment to fair trade.
Felicity Loudon, the great granddaughter of Cadbury's founder, told Channel 4 News: "I feel very passionately about the fact that my family is steeped in history, that the Quaker roots are there and I don't know whether Kraft understand as an American company, as a low-growth American conglomerate.
"The values are still there, the care for the workforce is still there. I think if Kraft bought it the chocolate would eventually be sold overseas? How many workers would lose their jobs? Would Bournville still be there, would Cadbury World remain? I doubt it.
She said she thought her great grandfather would "turn in his grave".
"He created what he considered a garden factory. He had this wonderful saying that nobody should live or work where a rose cannot grow. He cared for his worker, which can't be said for a lot of companies now."
