Why a Chinese food company wants to gobble up Western outfits

BRIGHT FOOD is a hungry company. The Shanghai government-controlled firm is reportedly among the bidders for GNC, an American nutrition-supplement chain. And it is pursuing a deal for Britain’s United Biscuits. Although Chinese companies have bought old European or American brands in other industries such as personal computers and cars, they have not shown much of an appetite for food and drink so far. But as their global reach grows, the Chinese are developing a taste for Western snacks.

United Biscuits, which makes such favourite British snacks as McVitie’s digestive biscuits, Jaffa Cakes and Hula Hoops, has been put up for sale by Blackstone and PAI, a French-American private-equity firm. The would-be buyer already runs four listed companies and has 3,300 retail shops throughout China. Bright Food makes dairy products, ice-cream, tinned food, sweets, honey products and rice wine but no biscuits. The deal would value United Biscuits at more than GBP2 billion ($3.2 billion). …