Unilever agrees Bertolli olive oil and vinegar sale

LONDON (Reuters) - Anglo-Dutch consumer goods group Unilever (ULVR.L) said on Monday it had agreed to sell its Bertolli olive oil and vinegar business to Spanish food group SOS Cuetara (SOS.MC) for 630 million euros ($998.4 million).

The deal is part of previously announced plans by Unilever, which makes Dove soap and Sunsilk shampoo, to sell non-core businesses with a collective turnover of over 2 billion euros.

SOS, Spain's second-biggest quoted food group, will acquire the worldwide license for the Bertolli brand covering olive oil and premium vinegar products, Unilever said.

SOS already owns Carbonell, which is the world's biggest olive oil brand, according to the firm's website.

Monday's deal also includes the sale of Unilever's Italian Maya, Dante, and San Giorgio olive oil and seed oil businesses, as well as its factory at Inveruno, Italy. Combined sales from all businesses bought by SOS hit some 380 million euros in 2007.

Unilever said it would keep the Bertolli brand for all other categories including margarine, pasta sauces, and frozen meals.

The brand remains a priority for the group Unilever said, "with strong growth plans based on capturing the growing appetite for Mediterranean food products".

Shares in both firms were practically flat following news of the deal, which SOS said would be paid for with a bridge loan.

That will be financed through one or more of several options -- a capital hike, an initial public offering of its olive oil business in Italy or the partial sale of non-strategic assets, SOS said.