Hindustan Unilever Limited (BSE:500696) is in talks to acquire majority stakes in direct-to-consumer brands Nutritionalab Private Limited (Wellbeing Nutrition) and Conscious Food Pvt Ltd. to strengthen in-house product categories, three people aware of the matter said. All three people spoke on the condition of anonymity. The Wellbeing Nutrition transaction is likely to be around $20 million, the person cited above said; the size of the Conscious Food deal couldn't be ascertained.

Hindustan Unilever is considering the Wellbeing acquisition to gain from growing consumer awareness for organic and healthy food. The diversified conglomerate is keen to ramp up its Annapurna brand, which primarily offers atta and salt, and Conscious Food could be housed under the same vertical if the deal materializes. A spokesperson for Hindustan Unilever said the company does not comment on "market speculation".

Email queries sent to Wellbeing Nutrition and Conscious Food remained unanswered till press time. The talks didn't yield any outcome as there were differences over valuation, among other reasons, the second person added.