CADBURY SCHWEPPES is poised to find a buyer for Monkhill, the company that makes Butterkist, Britain’s biggest-selling popcorn brand.

Monkhill was put up for sale in April last year as part of a drive to tidy up the multina-tional’s confectionery operation.

Sources suggest that Monkhill is likely to fetch more than £60m. One of the contenders to buy the business is Tangerine Confectionery, bought with the backing of Close Growth Capital in early 2006. In August last year, Tangerine bought the confectionery arm of Burton’s, best known for biscuits. Tangerine has annual sales of about £60m. Its products include Princess marshmallows, Taverners boiled sweets and Squirrel floral gums.

Besides Butterkist, Monkhill produces Sharps toffees and a range of own-brand confectionery for retailers. Annual sales are reckoned to be about £80m. Monkhill has plants in York, Pontefract, Cleckheaton and Hol-mwood in Chesterfield and employs 750 people in total.

Neither Cadbury Schweppes nor Tangerine would comment on any deal, but a sale is expected to be tied up before Christmas. A team of managers from Monkhill have tried to mount a buyout, but are thought to be out of the running.

Cadbury is due to give a group trading update on Tuesday. Sources indicate that the company has seen confectionery sales in the second half leap by as much as 10%, suggesting that the its confectionery sales for the whole of 2007 are likely to be around 7% higher than in 2006. Sales in summer last year were depressed by hot weather in Britain – a problem Cadbury did not face this summer.

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