Maizena is owned by Unilever (the United Kingdom, LSE: ULVR), which acquired the brand on 4 October 2000 for $24.3 billion from Bestfoods.[1][2][3] Before Unilever, Maizena was owned by Bestfoods to 2000.[3]
Maizena is the corn starch brand Unilever sells in Latin America, Spain and parts of Europe, used as a thickener in cooking and as a base for custards and desserts. The brand descends from the Corn Products Refining Company and reached Unilever through the acquisition of Bestfoods in 2000.
Controlling ownership as of . Brands grouped under the entity that owns them; large groups are collapsed.
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Unilever acquired Bestfoods, the American food group behind Knorr and Hellmann's, in what was then the largest cash acquisition in the food industry. The European Commission cleared the deal in Phase I subject to divestiture commitments.
The European Commission cleared Unilever's acquisition of Bestfoods in Phase I on 28 September 2000 under Article 6(1)(b) with conditions and obligations, after the parties offered divestitures. The case was notified on 16 August 2000 under the then-applicable Council Regulation 4064/89.
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The parent company of Maizena is Unilever, a publicly listed company headquartered in the United Kingdom.
Maizena originated in the United States in 1856, but it is owned today by Unilever, which is headquartered in the United Kingdom. So Maizena is an American-origin brand under British ownership.
Unilever completed its acquisition of Maizena on 4 October 2000, after announcing the deal on 6 June 2000. The deal was valued at $24.3 billion (enterprise value).
Before Unilever, Maizena was owned by Bestfoods until 2000.
Yes. As of 16 September 2026, Maizena is still owned by Unilever. The ownership record was last checked against primary sources on that date.
Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.
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