Kraft Heinz today (1 November) set out changes to its organisational structure, including splitting its international arm in three.
The US giant also announced a new chief executive for its North American business ahead of incumbent Carlos Abrams-Rivera taking the role of CEO in January.
The moves were announced alongside Kraft Heinz’s third-quarter financial results, which included higher net sales but lower “volume/mix”.
Kraft Heinz’s international business, which took in all operations outside North America, will be arranged across three units.
Europe and Pacific Developed Markets will house the ketchup maker’s operations in Europe, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.
A second unit – West and East Emerging Markets – will include Latin America, eastern Europe and the Middle East.
The third – Asia Emerging Markets – will take in Kraft Heinz’s businesses in Asia outside Japan and South Korea.
Meanwhile, Pedro Navio, an executive within Kraft Heinz’s North American business, has been named president of the division.
He will succeed Abrams-Rivera when he becomes CEO in January. Current chief executive Miguel Patricio will become the Oscar Mayer brand owner’s non-executive chair at the start of next year.
The changes will also see Kraft Heinz set up “global leadership teams” for its “growth” and “omnichannel” functions.
In the three months to 30 September, the baked beans maker saw its net sales rise 1% to $6.57bn. On an organic basis, Kraft Heinz’s net sales rose 1.7%, although “volume/mix” fell 5.4 percentage points.
Operating income dropped 13.1% to $653m. Net income was down 41.7% at $254m.
Kraft Heinz published an “adjusted EBITDA” of $1.57bn, which was up 11.9% year on year.
“Our third-quarter results were marked by net sales growth across each of our three core pillars: foodservice, emerging markets and US retail grow platforms,” Patricio said. “At the same time, we continue to improve productivity across the value chain, reinvesting gross efficiencies back into marketing, technology, and research and development. These investments remain a key part of our strategy as we build the business for continued success.”
For 2023 as a whole, Kraft Heinz is forecasting adjusted earnings per share to be in the range of $2.91 to $2.99, compared to the previous range of $2.83 to $2.91.
