The US food company Kraft is reportedly mulling over plans to sweeten its takeover bid for the British chocolate firm Cadbury as the deadline of January 5 for its existing cash & shares offer of £10 billion is drawing near.

Shareholders in Cadbury have been shunning Kraft’s current offer as its offer ended previous week worth 50p per share below British chocolate maker’s 798p share price.

Meanwhile the UK Takeover Panel extended the disclosure deadline from January 12 to January 15, allowing Cadbury to publish any new information about the takeover bid from Kraft and estimated trading results for 2009. 

Kraft, maker of Oreo cookies, will have to make a move by January 19. After January 19 it can make a higher offer only if a rival takeover bid is made by another company.

Another US chocolate maker Hershey and Italy’s Ferrero International have already made tentative approaches to Cadbury.