ConAgra Foods, Inc.,'is a leading packaged food company serving a wide variety
of food customers.'Over time, the company, which was first incorporated in 1919,
has grown through acquisitions, operations and internal brand and product development.'
The company's more significant acquisitions have included Beatrice Company in
1990, Golden Valley Microwave Foods in 1992 and International Home Foods in 2001.'
In recent years, ConAgra Foods has been pursuing an acquisition and divestiture
strategy to shift its focus toward its core branded and value-added food products.
The company's operations are classified into three reporting segments: Retail
Products, Foodservice Products and Food Ingredients.'
Retail Products
The Retail Products reporting segment includes branded foods in the shelf-stable,
frozen and refrigerated temperature classes which are sold in various retail
channels.
Shelf-stable products include tomato products, cooking oils, popcorn, soup,
puddings, meat snacks, canned beans, canned pasta, canned chili, cocoa mixes
and peanut butter for retail and deli customers.'Shelf-stable major brands include
Hunt's, Healthy Choice, Chef Boyardee, Wesson, Orville Redenbacher's, PAM, Slim
Jim, ACT II,Peter Pan, Van Camp's, Gulden's, Beanee Weenee, Manwich, Hunt's
Snack Pack, Swiss Miss, Knott's Berry Farm, La Choy, Gebhardt, DAVID, Wolf Brand,
Pemmican, Penrose and Andy Capp's.
Frozen food products include dinners, pizzas, turkeys, entrees, snacks, desserts,
ice cream, potato products, hand-held dough-based products and seafood for retail
and deli customers.'Frozen food major brands include Healthy Choice, Golden
Cuisine, Banquet, Marie Callender's, Butterball, Kid Cuisine, MaMa Rosa's, Rosarita,
Morton, Patio, La Choy, Artel and Wolfgang Puck.
Refrigerated food products include hot dogs, bacon, ham, sausages, cold cuts,
turkey products, ethnic foods, kosher products, meat alternative products (e.g.,
soy-based hot dogs and patties), tablespreads, egg alternatives and dessert
toppings for retail and deli customers.'Refrigerated food major brands include
Armour, Butterball, Cook's, Decker, Eckrich, Healthy Choice, Louis Kemp, Ready
Crisp, Hebrew National, Brown 'N Serve, Lightlife, National Deli, Parkay, Blue
Bonnet, Fleischmann's, Egg Beaters and Reddi-wip.
Foodservice Products
The Foodservice Products reporting segment includes branded and customized
food products, including meals, entrees, prepared potatoes, meats, seafood,
sauces, and a variety of custom-manufactured culinary products packaged for
sale to restaurants and other foodservice establishments.
Major brands include Armour, Butterball, County Line, Cook's, Decker, Longmont,
Eckrich, Margherita, Texas BBQ, Signature, Hebrew National, Parkay, Blue Bonnet,
Fleischmann's, Egg Beaters, Reddi-wip, Angela Mia, Hunt's, Healthy Choice, Chef
Boyardee, Banquet, Gilardi's, Lamb Weston, Holly Ridge, Fernando's, Rosarita,
The Max, Singleton, Wesson, PAM, Peter Pan, Van Camp's, Gulden's, J. Hungerford
Smith, Manwich, Hunt's Snack Pack, Swiss Miss, Knott's Berry Farm, La Choy,
Gebhardt and Wolf Brand.
Food Ingredients
The Food Ingredients segment includes certain branded and commodity food ingredients,
including milled grain ingredients, seasonings, blends and flavorings, which
are sold to food processors, as well as certain commodity sourcing and merchandising
operations.
ConAgra Foods is a food company that operates in many different areas of the
food industry, with a significant focus on the sale of branded and value-added
consumer products.'ConAgra Foods uses many different raw materials, the bulk
of which are commodities.'The prices paid for raw materials used in the products
of ConAgra Foods generally reflect factors such as weather, commodity market
fluctuations, currency fluctuations and the effects of governmental agricultural
programs.'
The company experiences intense competition for sales of its principal products
in its major markets.'The company's products compete with widely advertised,
well-known, branded products, as well as private label and customized products.'
The company has major competitors in each of its reporting segments.