NORTHFIELD, Ill. -- Kraft Foods Inc. announced yesterday that the North American grocery business of its wholly owned subsidiary Kraft Foods Group Inc. filed an initial Form 10 Registration Statement with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC). This filing relates to the company's previously announced plan to divide and create two public companies before the end of 2012: a global snacks business and a North American grocery business.
"The filing of the Form 10 Registration Statement is an important step in the process of establishing the North American grocery business as a new, standalone company with its own strategic focus and priorities," said chairman and CEO Irene Rosenfeld. "We believe that this business is well-positioned for success as an independent company."
Kraft Foods Inc. intends to spin off its North American grocery business through a tax-free distribution of shares to shareholders. Following the transaction, the North American grocery business will be an independent, public company operating under the Kraft Foods Group name.
Kraft Foods Group, with 2011 combined net revenues of $18.7 billion, will operate one of the largest and most-admired food and beverage businesses in North America. It will manufacture and market food and beverage products, including convenient meals, refreshment beverages and coffee, cheese and other grocery products, primarily in the United States and Canada, under a stable of iconic brands.
Its diverse brand portfolio consists of many of the most popular food brands in North America, including three brands with annual net revenues exceeding $1 billion each--Kraft cheeses, dinners and dressings; Oscar Mayer meats; and Maxwell House coffees--plus more than 20 brands with annual net revenues of between $100 million and $1 billion each.
The spinoff is subject to customary conditions, including receipt of regulatory approvals, an opinion from tax counsel and a favorable ruling from the Internal Revenue Service to ensure the tax-free status of the spinoff to shareholders, execution of inter-company agreements, further due diligence as appropriate and final approval of the Kraft Foods Inc. board.
Kraft announced in late March plans to name the snacks business Mondelez International Inc. "Mondelez" (pronounced mohn-dah-LEEZ') is a newly coined word that evokes the idea of "delicious world," the company said. "Monde" derives from the Latin word for "world," and "delez" is a fanciful expression of "delicious."
Northfield, Ill.-based Kraft Foods Inc. is a global snacks company with a portfolio of biscuits, confectionery, beverages, cheese, grocery products and convenient meals brands in approximately 170 countries, Kraft Foods had 2011 revenue of $54.4 billion; 12 of the brands-- Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oreo, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Tang and Trident--generate revenue of more than $1 billion annually.
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