B&G Foods Bids Goodbye to Another Brand
Another B&G Foods brand has left the stable. The New Jersey-based conglomerate announced the sale of the Le Sueur brand of premium canned sweet peas, green beans and carrots to McCall Farms, Inc. as part of its ongoing portfolio restructuring.
Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Proceeds from the sale are expected to be used for “general corporate purposes” and “the purchase of assets useful” in B&G Foods’ business, according to the company.
“Our sale of the Le Sueur brand represents continued progress in our ongoing efforts to reshape our portfolio, sharpen focus on our core brands and reduce long-term debt,” said Casey Keller, president and CEO of B&G Foods, in a press release. “The Le Sueur brand has performed very well for us over the years, and we believe it will continue to thrive under the ownership of McCall Farms.”
The sale does not include the Le Sieur brand in Canada. Barclays Capital Inc. and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. served as financial advisors to B&G Foods.
The company picked up Le Sueur as part of its $765 million acquisition of the Green Giant canned and frozen vegetable business from General Mills a decade ago. B&G Foods sold the Green Giant U.S. canned vegetables business to Seneca Foods Corp. two years ago and more recently has shared with the investment community that it is conducting a strategic review of the Green Giant frozen vegetables business.
In May, B&G Foods announced the sale of its two tomato products brands, Don Pepino and Sclafani, to newly formed portfolio company Violet Foods LLC, a subsidiary of Amphora Equity Partners. Earlier, the Cream of Wheat and Ortega maker offloaded snack brand Back to Nature to a subsidiary of Barilla America, Inc.
The latest divestment follows a particularly brutal few quarters for B&G Foods, which posted a net loss of $251.3 million in 2024 after recording impairment charges related to its frozen and vegetables business unit. In the recent quarter, the segment’s sales declined 11.2% due to a decrease in net pricing and a decline in volume.
