Swiss chocolate producer Barry Callebaut is to sell its U.S. consumer confectionery business.

Swiss chocolate producer Barry Callebaut is to sell its U.S. consumer confectionery business Brach's to U.S. candy group Farley's & Sathers. Callebaut indicated in June that it could sell Brach's, which it acquired just four years ago, to focus on its business-to-business chocolate operations. Callebaut announced that it had agreed to sell Brach's to Farley's & Sathers for an undisclosed sum. The sale includes three plants in Tennessee, Minnesota and Vernell in Mexico. Callebaut had acquired Brach's to gain access to large U.S. retailers and manufacture private-label chocolate for the U.S. market. However, as the market for private-label products in the United States had not developed in the same way as in Europe, the company had decided to concentrate on other priorities such as outsourcing and geographical expansion. Brach's, which is based in Dallas, has annual gross sales of around $270 million, with three-quarters of sales coming from sugar candy. Farley's & Sathers, which is owned by private equity group Catterton Partners, manufactures and distributes confectionery, gum and snacks.