Unilever is said to kick off sale of large part of $5.6-bn tea business

Unilever Plc has kicked-off the sale of large parts of its tea business, which could be valued at about 4 billion pounds ($5.6 billion), according to people familiar with the matter.
 

The UK-listed consumer group has reached out to potential suitors and is expecting first-round bids in September, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information.

Deliberations are ongoing and there’s no certainty it’ll decide to proceed with a sale, the people said. Unilever is also considering an initial public offering of the tea business, or a partnership, the company said in a first-half results statement in