The value of Kerry Group's offer for Golden Vale has fallen by more than 5 per cent as a result of a sharp fall in Kerry shares. When Kerry bid for Golden Vale, it was trading at €13.70 and this put a value of €1.37 on Golden Vale shares based on the one-for-ten swap offer. But Kerry closed down 33 cents on €13.00 yesterday, valuing Golden Vale at €1.30 per share. This means that the value of Kerry's proposed offer has fallen more than €11 million to €206.7 million in a week.

There has been no heavy selling of Kerry shares and the 5 per cent fall in the last week is on the back of very small volumes changing hands. But sources believe that the erosion in the share price puts pressure on the group to increase its offer.