FMCG multinational Campbell Soup Company has sold its European Chips Business for US$80 million to food company, Valeo Foods,
a portfolio company of CapVest Partners LLP.
Campbell’s European Chips Business includes Kettle Foods Limited in the UK and Yellow Chips B.V. in the Netherlands. The FMCG giant will use the proceeds from the divestiture to pay its debt.
Campbell’s will retain its Kettle Brand business in the US and other countries, except for Europe and the Middle East. It wants the brand to grow with its existing line of snack products, including Cape Cod, Emerald, Goldfish, Lance, Late July, Milano, Pepperidge Farm, Snack Factory Pretzel Crisps and Snyder’s of Hanover.
Kettle Foods Limited manufactures crisps, popcorn, rice snacks and vegetable chips and has Kettle Chips and Metcalfe’s skinny popcorn under its belt. The deal also includes Yellow Chips, which produces vegetable and organic potato chips under its Go Pure premium brand and private labels.
The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of fiscal 2020.
Last month, the soup company confirmed the sale of Arnott’s Biscuits to the global investment firm KKR for US$2.2 billion. The deal gives KKR the exclusive rights to use Campbell brands, including Campbell’s, Swanson, V8, Prego, Chunky and Campbell’s Real Stock.
