Kraft Heinz Co (KHC)

The Kraft Heinz Company (Nasdaq: KHC) is a global food and beverage company that grows iconic and emerging brands under the purpose "Let's Make Life Delicious." It reported 2025 net sales of approximately $25 billion. The company was formed on July 2, 2015, when Kraft Foods Group merged with a wholly-owned subsidiary of H.J. Heinz Holding Corporation, which was then renamed The Kraft Heinz Company. In September 2025 it announced plans to separate into two independent public companies through a tax-free spin-off, but on February 11, 2026 its Board decided to pause work on the separation. It operates on a 52- or 53-week fiscal year ending on the last Saturday in December.

The company manages four operating segments: North America, Europe and Pacific Developed Markets, West and East Emerging Markets, and Asia Emerging Markets. It has two reportable segments, North America and International Developed Markets, and combines the other two as Emerging Markets. It also manages sales through eight consumer-driven product platforms, shown with their share of 2025 net sales. Taste Elevation (45%) covers condiments, sauces, dressings and spreads. Easy Ready Meals (17%) includes Kraft Mac & Cheese, frozen potato products and other frozen meals. Substantial Snacking (6%) includes Lunchables, frozen snacks and pickles. Desserts (5%), Hydration (8%), Cheese (7%), Coffee (3%) and Meats (8%) make up the rest. Hydration covers ready-to-drink, powdered and liquid concentrate beverages. Meats include cold cuts, bacon and hot dogs. Platforms are assigned the roles Accelerate, Protect or Balance to guide resource allocation. Key trademarks include Kraft, Oscar Mayer, Heinz, Philadelphia, Lunchables, Velveeta, Ore-Ida, Maxwell House, Kool-Aid and Jell-O, plus Capri Sun under license in North America. Other brands include Golden Circle and Wattie's in International Developed Markets, and Master, ABC, Quero and Pudliszki in Emerging Markets. The company divested its Italian infant and specialty food business, including the Plasmon brand, on December 31, 2025.

Products are sold through the company's own sales organizations and through independent brokers, agents and distributors. Customers include grocery chains, wholesalers, cooperatives, convenience, value and club stores, pharmacies, mass merchants, foodservice distributors and institutions such as hotels, restaurants, hospitals and government agencies. Products are also sold through e-commerce platforms. Customer concentration is notable: Walmart Inc. accounted for about 21% of net sales in 2025, 2024 and 2023. The five largest customers represented about 46% of North America net sales, 27% of International Developed Markets net sales and 15% of Emerging Markets net sales.

The company manufactures, and contracts for the manufacture of, its products from raw materials such as dairy, meat, sugar and sweeteners, coffee, tomato products, oils, eggs, fruits, vegetables and grains. It also buys packaging materials including plastics, resin, cardboard, glass, paper and metal. Procurement is centralized for common commodities, and hedging is used to limit price swings, though not fully. Research and development focuses on product innovation, food safety and quality, package performance and supply chain productivity. Competitors include large national and international food and beverage companies, local and regional firms, and retailer private-label products. The company had about 35,000 employees in 40 countries at the end of 2025, roughly 16,000 of them in the United States. Its operations are subject to food, environmental and anti-corruption regulation in the U.S. and abroad.