NEW YORK, Oct 29 (Reuters) - A U.S. bankruptcy judge on

Tuesday approved Tupperware Brands' ( TUPBQ ) proposal to sell

its assets to its lenders, clearing the company to exit

bankruptcy with most of its operations intact.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Brendan Shannon approved the sale at a

court hearing in Wilmington, Delaware, saying it was the best

available option for Tupperware.

The food storage and kitchen products company had tried to

find a buyer for months before its bankruptcy filing, but none

were willing to pay off the company's $818 million in debt,

Tupperware attorney Spencer Winters said at the hearing.

The lender group that is acquiring Tupperware includes

Stonehill Capital Management Partners and Alden Global Capital,

two investment firms that acquired Tupperware debt at a steep

discount over the summer, according to Tupperware's court

filings. The lenders are providing $23.5 million in cash and

over $63 million in debt relief.

The sale includes Tupperware's brand name and its assets in

core markets including the United States, Canada, Mexico,

Brazil, China, Korea, India and Malaysia. The company plans to

wind down its operations in certain other markets and shift to a

"digital-first, technology-led and asset-light" business model

after emerging from bankruptcy, Tupperware CEO Laurie Ann

Goldman said in a statement last week.

The Orlando, Florida-based company filed for Chapter 11

protection last month, seeking to auction its assets on the open

market.

But Tupperware's lenders opposed the company's sale plans,

preferring to claim the assets for themselves. The lenders cut

off the company's access to cash early in the bankruptcy, before

the two sides agreed to a deal.