If last fall was CPG breakup season, the first quarter of 2026 was cuffing season. From Unilever and McCormick’s deal to Kraft Heinz’s conscious recoupling, plus a few potential mergers still in the works, we’re breaking down the tie-ups to know from Q1.

McCormick and Unilever unite their sauces and spices

Making it official on the last day of Q1, Unilever announced it’s spinning off its food business to combine with spice maker McCormick in a deal valuing Unilever at $44.8 billion and McCormick at $21 billion.

The combined company, led by McCormick President and CEO Brendan Foley, will unite Unilever’s Hellmann’s and Knorr with McCormick’s spices and brands like Cholula hot sauce and Maille French mustard. The new business boosts the global reach, retail and distribution scale, and innovation resources across the two companies.

It also allows Unilever to become a “pureplay’ household and personal care player, Unilever CEO Fernando Fernández noted in a statement—with brands like Dove and Vaseline operating in more “high-growth” categories—after spinning off its ice cream business last year. Unilever’s move continues the trend of CPGs streamlining operations, like the recent Kellogg Company and Keurig Dr Pepper splits, and rival P&G’s sale of its beauty brands to Coty a decade ago.

Keep reading here.—EC

The European Central Bank just sent a warning across to US consumers: Right now, retailers are absorbing the lion’s share of tariff-induced cost increases, but eventually, the burden will shift to consumers.

New analysis from the bank’s Economic Bulletin found that in the long-term, as retailers lose their ability to take a financial hit in order to hold down prices, shoppers could bear over half of total cost increases, up from around a third currently.

• Meanwhile, foreign firms are bearing just 5% of the cost of tariffs, with the rest falling on US firms and consumers.

The latest round of retail earnings showed that retailers are still keen to avoid price increases regardless of what happens with tariffs.

Keep reading here.—AV

Easter was yesterday, and if NRF estimates were on point, there were a record $24.9 billion in retail sales fueled by candy, gifts, decorations, and clothing. Passover, which started last Wednesday, concludes this Thursday, and after that, the big spring holidays will be behind us, ushering in that unpredictable sales period between major holidays and big summer deal days and back-to-school season that give retailers and consumers a sense of direction.

Here’s what else is going on in retail this week:

In remodels: Walmart this month is starting remodeling projects at several Walmart Neighborhood Markets, mainly across the US South, with the goal of delivering “quicker results and less consumer disruption.” The retailer says it is experimenting with a quicker turnaround than the typical month remodeling process, shutting down their main sales floors for just four weeks while keeping pharmacies and fuel stations open. “This is an opportunity to test, learn, and refine our remodel process to identify best practices for the future,” the company wrote in a blog post.

Keep reading here.—AV