Milling & Baking News - February 12, 2019 - 11

Business

Conagra to close Pinnacle Foods'
Boulder office by end of 2019
BOULDER, COLO. - Conagra Brands,
Inc. has announced plans to lay off approximately 100 employees at its Pinnacle Foods, Inc. office in Boulder as part
of a planned shutdown of the facility.
"In October, Conagra Brands acquired Pinnacle Foods and, as a part of
that transaction, committed to undergoing a thorough evaluation process of
the Boulder Brands business," said Michael Cummins, vice-president of communications at Conagra. "Conagra recently completed a data-based analysis
based on capabilities and determined
it was best to integrate and build the

president and chief executive officer of
Conagra, said "subpar innovation and
executional missteps" led to "highly
disappointing" results in the Pinnacle
Foods business.
"We need to bring our executional
capabilities to the Pinnacle business
now," Mr. Connolly said. "We now
have a clear understanding of the
source of the weakness in the business,
and we've started to take action."
The acquisition of Pinnacle Foods
was expected to strengthen Conagra's
position in the frozen food market. Pinnacle Foods owned the Birds Eye, Mrs.
Paul's and Hungry-Man brands. Pinnacle Foods also has a strong presence
in the center of the retail store and in
the market for gluten-free products. MBN

Boulder-based brands into Conagra the
way of innovation, development, brand
building and business process. This
requires everyone being in the same
location so teams can work fast and
efficiently, share ideas for innovation
in real time and build our brands with
each other. As a result, the Boulder office
location will close by the end of 2019,
though many employees will be offered
jobs in other Conagra locations."
Mr. Cummins said employees will
receive severance pay and outplacement support.
In December, Sean M. Connolly,

Grain-free tortilla brand wraps
up $90 million funding round
low-inflammation, grain-free diet to manage her symptoms but missed eating tacos

SIETE FAMILY FOODS

AUSTIN, TEXAS - Siete Family Foods
has raised $90 million in new funding
through a minority investment led by
Stripes Group, a New York-based growth
equity firm. Founded in 2014, Siete Family Foods produces a range of grain-free
tortillas and tortilla chips, plant-based
queso, and hot sauces that are sold in
more than 4,400 retail outlets across the
country. The latest funding will be used
to support new product development
and distribution. The company also plans
to expand its staff from 40 full-time employees to nearly double that in 2019.
The business was launched by brotherand-sister team Miguel and Veronica Garza and their mother, Aida. Veronica Garza,
who had been diagnosed with multiple
autoimmune conditions, had adopted a

and fajitas, the culinary staples of her family's culture. Experimenting in the kitchen
led to the development of an almond flour
tortilla, an instant hit among friends, family

Plant-based group to advocate for
sustainable products and packaging
BERKELEY, CALIF. - Archer Daniels
Midland Co., Cargill, Tate & Lyle and Ingredion are among the founding members
of the Plant Based Products Council, which
will seek more sustainable consumer products and packaging through greater use
of plant-based materials. The council was
launched Jan. 29 at the California Bioresources Economy Summit in Berkeley.
The council will promote the adoption
and use of products derived from renewable biomass. It will advocate for private
sector programs and government policies
to encourage use of renewable materials
and feedstocks, including policies to reduce
carbon emissions, improve water quality
bakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com

and soil health, and curtail solid waste destined for landfills. The Plant Based Products Council launched a database featuring
more than 480 plant-based and bio-based
products already on the market.
The council released polling conducted
in August 2018 showing strong interest
from millennials in bioplastics. The polling
found 48% of millennials said they feel most
guilty about their own plastic use, which
compared to other resources such as paper
(33%), water (31%) or how much they drive
(31%). Sixty-four per cent of millennials said
they were willing to use plastic alternatives,
and 60% said they were surprised by the
lack of alternative options to plastic.

and the Hispanic community.
"This investment is going to provide us
the resources to keep expanding, while remaining true to our core values as a family
and company," said Mr. Garza, the company's chief executive officer. "Customers
are going to be seeing even more of Siete
as we continue to innovate and develop
new products in our growing line of better-for-you Mexican-American food."
Karen Kenworthy, Stripes Group partner, added, "Siete's celebration of family
and Mexican-American heritage has created a truly organic brand ethos that connects
to a broad audience. Siete is special - it's
not often you come across a team driven by
such unique values rooted in family, inclusivity, innovation and a broad commitment
to bringing the consumer better-for-you alternatives. We're looking forward to joining
Siete on this exciting journey as they build
an iconic Mexican-American brand platform for today's generation." MBN
Other companies in the council include
Georgia-Pacific, WestRock-Multi Packaging Solutions, Stone Straw, Loliware,
Visolis Biotechnology, Newtrient, Future
iQ, Emerald Brand, Hemp Road Trip, the
Hemp Industries Association and TreeFree
Hemp. Making up an advisory board are
GreenBlue, Californians Against Waste, the
International Conservation Caucas Foundation, University of California Division
of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and
Ramani Narayan, Ph.D., of Michigan State
University's Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science.
"Businesses and consumers alike recognize the need to solve the problem of plastic pollution that harms our environment,"
said John Bode, president and chief executive officer of the Washington-based Corn
Refiners Association. MBN
Milling & Baking News

February 12, 2019 / 11

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Milling & Baking News - February 12, 2019

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