McCormick to Add London Listing, Split Consumer Brands Into Two Divisions After Unilever Foods Deal

McCormick & Company announced its post-merger corporate structure Thursday, setting out how the spice giant plans to absorb Unilever's foods business into a $20 billion global operation.

The deal, first disclosed earlier and expected to close by mid-2027, will fold brands like Hellmann's and Cholula into McCormick's existing spice and seasoning portfolio. The combined consumer business will run through two geographic arms: an $8 billion Americas Consumer division covering North, Central and South America, and a $7 billion International Consumer division for everywhere else.

Beyond consumer brands, McCormick is carving out a $4 billion global foodservice unit and a $2.5 billion global B2B flavor business, according to The Grocer. That's four total reportable segments once the transaction closes.

A London Listing, But Maryland Stays Home Base

McCormick will keep its primary listing on the New York Stock Exchange under its existing ticker, MKC. But the company confirmed it will add a secondary listing on the London Stock Exchange, a move it framed as reflecting the "global nature" of the combined operations.

Global headquarters stays in Hunt Valley, Maryland. The international headquarters lands in the Netherlands, where Unilever's food business already runs what McCormick calls "world-leading R&D facilities." The deal preserves a chunk of Unilever's European corporate footprint and R&D jobs rather than consolidating everything stateside.

Who Runs What

CEO Brendan Foley keeps his job leading the combined company, with McCormick CFO Marcos Gabriel staying on too. Below them, the leadership team is a genuine mix of both companies, not a McCormick takeover in all but name.

Heiko Schipper, currently president of Unilever Foods, will run the International Consumer division. Andrew Foust, McCormick's chief integration officer and former head of its Americas division, takes the Americas Consumer job.

Three more former Unilever Foods executives keep senior roles: Nuria Hernández Crespo, currently CEO of Unilever Food Solutions, becomes EVP for global foodservice. Jennifer Han, Unilever's chief product supply officer for nutrition, becomes the combined company's chief supply chain officer. Heike Steiling, Unilever's chief R&D officer, keeps the same title under McCormick.

Foust's integration management office stays active after the deal closes to manage the handoff and wind down transition service agreements with Unilever, according to The Grocer.

Why the Structure Matters

Foley called the setup a way to "place consumers and customers at the center of the combined business." McCormick is betting that splitting consumer brands by geography, rather than folding everything into one global unit, lets local teams move faster on what sells in Sao Paulo versus what sells in Amsterdam.

Foust said the two companies' work so far had "already laid a foundation for the combined company," citing what he called strong cultural alignment between the two organizations. Neither source includes outside analyst pushback on whether the integration will actually go smoothly.

What's Still Unconfirmed

Neither source lays out the deal's total purchase price, financing structure, or shareholder vote timeline. Nor is there detail yet on job cuts, if any, tied to combining back-office functions between two companies that between them run global supply chains.

The deal still needs to close, which McCormick pegs at mid-2027. That's roughly a year out from today. Regulatory approval across the multiple countries where Unilever's food brands operate is not addressed in either source, meaning antitrust review in the EU, UK, or elsewhere could still shape or delay the timeline.

For now, what's confirmed is the org chart and the listing plan. The purchase price, deal financing, and any headcount impact remain open questions McCormick hasn't answered publicly as of this announcement.