Hershey has been in talks with credit-ratings companies in recent days about how to structure a bid without imperiling its investment-grade debt rating, said the people, who declined to be identified because the talks are private. It’s also been drafting commitment letters with its lenders, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp., to secure a multi-billion-dollar loan package, the people said.

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"This is an awful big prize," Jack Russo, an analyst with Edward Jones & Co. in St. Louis, said in an interview. The benefit of buying Cadbury "just depends on how they structure the deal. This is a chance for them to boost their presence internationally." Russo recommends holding Hershey stock.

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Kraft has until Jan. 19 under U.K. law to raise its offer, and Hershey may conclude that a higher Kraft bid puts the maker of Dairy Milk chocolate and Creme Eggs out of its reach, the people said. Hershey will have another four days, until Jan. 23, to decide whether to enter the fray. In addition to financing the bid through loans and new Hershey shares, the company is also trying to raise cash by selling equity stakes to new investors, the people said.

It is now urging Hershey's chief executive, David West, to make a competing offer to the $16.5 billion bid Kraft made earlier this month for Cadbury, people familiar with the matter say. A bid, if one emerges, wouldn't be ready for at least two weeks, and the potential terms remain in flux.

One possible scenario, said these people, would include at least $10 billion in cash from Hershey, plus $2 billion in new Hershey shares. A third component of this package would be an additional $3 billion to $5 billion in cash from rich investors in exchange for equity in Hershey, these people said. The investors are being courted by Hershey adviser Byron Trott, a former Goldman Sachs banker known for his close relationships with Warren Buffett and other rich investors.

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Mr. Hershey was considered as much a philanthropist as an entrepreneur. He held the view that businesses and their leaders were morally obligated to share their wealth with society. So as he built the chocolate company he raised a town as well -- erecting a bank, a department store, churches, golf courses, a zoo and a trolley system.

In 1909, he and his wife, Catherine, founded a school for orphan boys, now called the Milton Hershey School. He later transferred his wealth, including his company ownership, to Hershey Trust Co., which administers the school's trust.

"Hershey's is making the strategic decision to exit the online retail business," said Hershey spokesman Kirk Saville. "The current business model is not sustainable."

Saville said that the company was looking into other e-commerce options, including strategic partnerships and licensing agreements. He declined to say how much revenue the online service was bringing in or if it was losing money.

Hershey and ConAgra, in separate statements late Saturday said they do not purchase any ingredients from the Peanut Corp of America, which is at the center of the investigation.

Peanut Corp said it had been informed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that some samples of its products had tested positive for a salmonella strain that may have originated in a Blakely, Georgia, peanut processing plant. The recalled peanut butter was sold in bulk packaging in containers ranging from 5 pounds (2.3 kg) to 1,700 pounds (771 kg) and the peanut paste was sold in sizes ranging from 35-pound (16-kg) containers to tanker containers. None of the peanut butter or peanut paste being recalled is sold through retail stores, PCA said.

Kellogg Co said on Friday it was recalling certain products that "have the potential to be contaminated," including some Austin and Keebler branded peanut butter snacks and some Famous Amos and Keebler Soft Batch cookies. H-E-B, Ralcorp Frozen Baker and Hy-Vee Inc have issued recalls for a range of their products that could have been contaminated.