The global value of all M&A activity for all business fell 37% through the first nine months of 2009, sinking to its lowest level since 2004, according to investment banking analytic software designer Dealogic.

A mid-year Food Institute Report assessment found that M&A activity in the food sector was down more than 50% through the first six months of 2009. Not only were there no major confectionery takeovers, there were practically no minor buyouts, either, among the manufacturers on Candy Industry’s Global Top 100 list.

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In fact, list-wise, consolidation went in reverse. For possibly the first time in the nine years Candy Industry has been compiling this inventory, a listed company split into two, and both made the roll. Last year’s No. 29, Fazer Konfektyr Service, divided into Fazer Confectionery (at No. 39) and Cloetta (No. 68).

Other than that, things were remarkably quiet.

Among the Top 10, Ferrero moved past Cadbury into the No. 3 spot.

Extremely tight-lipped Haribo for the first time released a sales estimate (albeit a broad one), when Managing Director Hans Riegel related in an interview that the company’s sales fell somewhere between 1.7 billion and 2 billion euros. The number, slightly higher than Candy Industry had estimated in the past, moved the gummy kingpin from 10th into eighth.

And Meiji Seika Kaisha, after merging with its milk compatriot Meiji Dairies, released more specific confectionery sales figures that were significantly less than our former estimates. That news sent the company, now known as Meiji Holdings, from ninth place into 13th. August Storck took its place, rounding out the Top 10 by moving from No. 11 in 2008 to No. 10 this year.

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New to the Top 100 List were three previously overlooked confectionery makers: U.S. marshmallow giant Doumak (No. 96), Spanish gummy maker Sánchez Cano (No. 81) and German chocolate expert Rausch Schokoladen (No. 74).

Within the chart, the biggest movement came from PepsiCo and Israel’s Strauss Group. The two went in opposite directions.

Past estimates included only PepsiCo’s Sonric’s candy brands, part of its Mexican Sabritas division. This year, Candy Industry rolled in Pepsi’s snack bar brands. Catching that oversight moved the snack giant into No. 32 — a 20-place jump from No. 52 in 2008.

On the flipside, new data on Strauss led to a reassessment and a significantly lower confectionery volume estimate. Strauss dropped from No. 41 in 2008 to No. 62 in 2009.The question now becomes, with the global economic recovery looking like it might stick, was 2009 the calm before an M&A whirlwind?

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If the developments of the final weeks of 2009 are any indication, things could be a lot more active in 2010. In fact, there could be a new market leader. At the writing of this piece, Cadbury had until Feb. 2 to decide whether or not to accept Kraft Foods’ buyout offer.

Cadbury’s management disparaged the offer and expressed confidence its shareholders would do the same. If management is wrong — or if the deal spurs another offer (Ferrero and The Hershey Co. were rumored to be courting Cadbury as well, although media reports suggested an actual offer was unlikely) — Mars’ reign as the undisputed king of global confectionery could be fairly short.