McCormick & Co. (MKC) risk factors: FY2025 10-K

Item 1A of the 10-K for the period ending 2025-11-30, filed 2026-01-22. 33 risk factor headings as filed. Read Item 1A in full · The whole 10-K · What changed since FY2024

1new since FY2024
4reworded
0removed
28unchanged

Headings mentioning a theme: Tariffs 0 · AI 0 · Cybersecurity 1 · China 0 · Interest rates 2. Compare across the S&P 500.

Risks Related to Our Company, Business and Operations

20
  1. Deterioration of global economic conditions, an economic recession or slow growth, periods of inflation, or economic uncertainty in our key markets may adversely affect customer and consumer spending as well as demand for our products.
  2. Damage to our reputation or brand name, loss of brand relevance, increase in use of private label or other competitive brands by customers or consumers, competitive pressures in marketing and technology, or product quality or safety concerns could negatively impact our business, financial condition or results of operations.reworded
  3. Customer consolidation, consumer behaviors, and competitive, economic and other pressures facing our customers, may impact our financial condition or results of operations.
  4. The inability to maintain mutually beneficial relationships with large customers could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
  5. Issues regarding procurement of raw materials may negatively impact us.
  6. Changes in global trade policies have impacted and may continue to impact our financial condition or results of operations.new
  7. Disruption of our supply chain could adversely affect our business.
  8. Our results of operations can be adversely affected by labor shortages, turnover and labor cost increases or any failure to effectively manage changes in our workforce.
  9. We may not be able to increase prices to fully offset inflationary and other pressures on costs, such as raw and packaging materials, labor and distribution costs, which may impact our financial condition or results of operations.reworded
  10. Our profitability may suffer as a result of competition in our markets.
  11. Changing political and geopolitical conditions, including conflicts and the related implications may negatively impact our operations.reworded
  12. Our operations may be impaired as a result of disasters, business interruptions or similar events.
  13. We may not be able to successfully consummate and manage ongoing acquisition, joint venture and divestiture activities which could have an impact on our results.
  14. An impairment of the carrying value of goodwill or other indefinite-lived intangible assets could adversely affect our results.
  15. Streamlining actions to reduce fixed costs, simplify or improve processes, and improve our competitiveness may have a negative effect on employee relations.
  16. If we are unable to fully realize the benefits from our CCI program or streamlining actions to reduce fixed costs, simplify or improve our competitiveness, our financial results could be negatively affected.
  17. Fluctuations in foreign currency markets may negatively impact us.
  18. We face risks associated with certain pension assets and obligations.
  19. Climate change, or legal, regulatory or market measures to address climate change, may negatively affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
  20. Climate change and sustainability issues may have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations and damage our reputation.reworded

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Risks Relating to Credit and Capital Markets, Our Credit Rating, Borrowings and Dividends

6
  1. Increases in interest rates or changes in our credit ratings may negatively impact us.Interest rates
  2. Our credit ratings impact the cost and availability of future borrowings and, accordingly, our cost of capital.
  3. We may incur additional indebtedness to finance our acquisitions that may limit our ability to, among other matters, issue additional indebtedness, meet our debt service requirements, react to rising interest rates, comply with certain covenants and compete with less highly leveraged competitors.Interest rates
  4. The deterioration of credit and capital markets may adversely affect our access to sources of funding.
  5. Uncertain global economic conditions expose us to credit risks from customers and counterparties.
  6. The declaration, payment and amount of dividends is made at the discretion of our board of directors and depends on a number of factors.

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Risks Related to Intellectual Property, Information Technology, and Cybersecurity

3
  1. Our intellectual property rights, and those of our customers, could be infringed, challenged or impaired, and reduce the value of our products and brands or our business with customers.
  2. Our operations and reputation may be impaired if our information technology systems fail to perform adequately or if we are the subject of a data breach or cyber-attack.Cybersecurity
  3. If we are not able to successfully implement our business transformation initiative or utilize information technology systems and networks effectively, our ability to conduct our business may be negatively impacted.

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Risks Related to Our Global Business, Litigation, Laws and Regulations

4
  1. Laws and regulations could adversely affect our business.
  2. Litigation, legal or administrative proceedings could have an adverse impact on our business and financial condition or damage our reputation.
  3. Our international and cross-border operations are subject to additional risks.
  4. The global nature of our business, changes in tax legislation and the resolution of tax uncertainties create volatility in our effective tax rate.

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Headings are the lines of Item 1A set wholly in bold or italics, as the parser reads them, without the introductory paragraph that opens the section. A heading is new when no heading in the prior 10-K matches it after ignoring case and punctuation, and reworded when it shares at least 60 percent of its words with one that went away. Source: the filing on sec.gov.