Kraft, the US food conglomerate that controversially acquired UK chocolate-maker Cadbury for £11.6bn early last year, has had to promise to pay almost £400m towards Cadbury’s deficit-struck pension scheme.

Shortly after buying Cadbury, the US firm was criticised for trying to encourage workers to leave the defined-benefit plan, after discovering that a quirk in its rules makes it difficult to close unilaterally. At the time of the deal, the £2bn fund's three-year valuation would have just started.