Sept. 25--Packaged food giant ConAgra is likely to bring more workers to Chicago, even as it cuts jobs elsewhere, its CEO said Friday as sources told the Tribune that the firm is negotiating for space in the Merchandise Mart.
Fueling speculation that the owner of brands including Chef Boyardee, Hebrew National hot dogs and Slim Jim meat sticks could move its headquarters from Omaha to Chicago, CEO Sean Connolly told a shareholder meeting in Nebraska on Friday that Illinois "is an important part of our history and will continue to be an important part of our journey. It is likely there will be some increase there."
A source familiar with ConAgra's negotiations to move into the Merchandise Mart in the city's River North neighborhood said that the company had agreed in principle to lease 180,000 to 200,000 square feet but no final deal had been signed, as the firm hopes to extract concessions from the city for moving staff from both its suburban offices in Naperville and its Omaha headquarters.
A spokesman for the city did not return phone calls.
At 200,000 square feet, a new office could accommodate up to 1,000 employees -- far more than the approximately 400 currently stationed in Naperville. About 3,000 ConAgra employees work at the headquarters campus in Omaha, in Lincoln and across the Missouri River in Council Bluffs, Iowa.
Asked about the plans to move into the Merchandise Mart, ConAgra spokesman Dan Hare said in an email that ConAgra management "haven't finalized any decisions" but declined to comment further.
Connolly -- who lives in the Chicago area and was named CEO in April -- and his management team are under pressure from activist investors Jana Partners, which has said ConAgra's results have been disappointing since it in 2013 bought generic store brand business Ralcorp, which it is now attempting to sell.
Job cuts and a reshuffling of the firm's structure come on the back of an effort to promote the firm's brands such as Hunt's tomatoes and Reddi-wip as authentic and healthy alternatives to competing packaged foods.
Employees will learn next week about upcoming changes, Connolly said Friday. "Will there be job reductions over time as we redesign the organization? Likely yes," he said. "Will there be some geographic reshuffling? Likely yes."
Still, Connolly said, Omaha, whose civic and business leaders have been concerned about ConAgra's continued presence, will continue to play an important role for ConAgra.
Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert has said she talked to a ConAgra executive on Tuesday and intends to meet with company representatives again next week.
In 1987, Nebraska approved a package of financial incentives that kept ConAgra from leaving for Tennessee, where such corporate incentives were pioneered and often practiced.
Associated Press contributed.
kjanssen@tribpub.com
