A group of Italian banks is pushing to split up Parmalat in a move that could ease its quick sale to a rival but goes against the strategy of Enrico Bondi, the Italian dairy company's administrator, to build a dominant force in the food industry.

The bank grouping is gearing up for a showdown at a Parmalat shareholder meeting on November 7th when there will be elections for a board of directors. It wants the company's manufacturing operations separated from a mass of legal actions related to its collapse amid fraud two years ago.

Mr Bondi has guided the company since the collapse, and it was relisted this month. He had been planning to stand down after the relisting but has been persuaded to run for election as chief executive by shareholders headed by Lehman Brothers.

Lehman and others are compiling a list of directors that will probably compete against another list compiled by the banks.

The Italian banks, and some international ones, comprise about a quarter of Parmalat's shareholders because they were creditors when the company collapsed and have swapped their debt for equity. However, Mr Bondi is suing dozens of the banks for billions of euros for their alleged role in prolonging the fraud.

None of the banks has admitted wrongdoing.

The complicated legal process, and calculations of how much money may eventually be recovered in restitution, make it difficult to value the company.

Mr Bondi wants any financial restitution to be added to the company's €2 billion asset base.

The banks and some other investors believe the legal processes should be separated from the manufacturing operations to create greater transparency.

People close to the banks' camp said the legal processes should be put into a "litigation stub" - a promise to pay shareholders proceeds from any settlements - while Parmalat's shares would be valued on manufacturing alone.