Kraft Heinz has announced that it will combine its US and Canada businesses to create the North America Zone in a bid to advance its long-term, sustainable growth plans.
The move, which is expected to be executed in the second quarter of 2022, will bring increased agility to its innovation agenda, operations, and go-to-market approach.
The US and Canada businesses accounted for approximately 80% of its 2020 consolidated net sales, Kraft Heinz added.
Kraft Heinz North America Zone
In the last 12 months, Kraft Heinz has implemented several measures to transform its overall growth profile, strategic focus, and financial flexibility, including divesting certain assets in its global cheese and nuts businesses.
The group has also centred its business around a 'consumer-first approach', significantly investing in its portfolio, digital solutions, customer relationships, and people.
The company believes the creation of the North America Zone will further fuel Kraft Heinz’s vision to leverage its scale through improved agility for competitive advantage.
Miguel Patricio, CEO of Kraft Heinz, said, "As consumer, customer, and employee needs change, we must be in a position to anticipate, adjust, and respond with speed.
"Combining our US and Canada businesses—two dynamic Zones—gives us a distinct advantage and will produce faster, more effective results so we can continue investing in our strategic plan and driving sustainable growth. While this is an evolution to our structure, it is part of a broader revolution in how we will work at Kraft Heinz going forward."
The new zone will be led by the current president of the US zone, Carlos Abrams-Rivera.
Since joining Kraft Heinz in February 2020, Abrams-Rivera has been instrumental in reigniting growth in the US business, the company’s largest zone.
Other Appointment
The company also announced the appointment of Robert Scott as president of research and development for the North America division.
Scott joins Kraft Heinz from Abbott Nutrition, where he most recently served as divisional vice president of global product development.
In this role, he successfully delivered a wide range of product solutions that met the diverse needs of consumers and retailers, as well as led the development of products to support Abbott Nutrition’s medical, institutional, and clinical businesses globally.
Prior to Abbott Nutrition, Scott was vice president of research and development for Latin America at Coca-Cola, where he delivered consumer-centric product innovations, as well as packaging solutions to support environmental and sustainability goals.
© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine. Article by Conor Farrelly. For more A-Brands news, click here. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
