Feb. 13--Kraft Foods Group said Thursday some of its top leaders under its former CEO are leaving, paving the way for the food-maker to start fresh under Chairman and CEO John Cahill.
The executive changes are the first big overhaul from the company since Cahill, who already was serving as chairman, replaced Tony Vernon as CEO in December. The Northfield-based maker of Kraft cheese, Oscar Mayer meats and Planters nuts has vowed to speed up changes after months of poor results.
"We've done fine. This is not a broken company by any stretch. But we do need to adapt a turnaround mindset in many ways," Cahill said on his first quarterly conference call as the company's CEO.
Cahill discussed potential changes, such as the need to dig deeper into what consumers really want. He did not go into too much detail, saying he wants more time to determine what the company must do.
Last year was a bit of a struggle for the packaged food giant. Kraft's push to reignite sales of old brands such as Jell-O were not strong enough, especially given consumers' growing focus on fresh foods and packaged foods with fewer ingredients, plus some unexpected product recalls. Plus, Kraft quickly raised prices on food such as cheese and meat as its own costs rose, only to see competitors take their time raising prices.
Kraft's U.S. market share did not increase in any category last year. The company held steady in 60 percent of those categories and lost share in the other 40 percent, Cahill said. He said Kraft needs to ensure its brands "are relevant to today's consumers so we can grow, rather than just hold on."
Kraft plans to lay out more of its strategy in the second quarter.
Chief Marketing Officer Deanie Elsner, a 23-year company veteran, and Chief Financial Officer Teri List-Stoll, who just joined Kraft at the end of 2013, will leave Kraft at the end of February. Chuck Davis, executive vice president of research, development, quality and innovation, is set to leave Kraft once his successor is named.
Jane Hilk, the company's president of enhancers and snack nuts, was appointed interim CMO. Until it has a new CFO, Kraft's finance team will report directly to Cahill.
The company also named George Zoghbi chief operating officer. Zoghbi is currently its vice chairman of operations, research and development, sales and strategy.
Chris Kempczinski, who runs Kraft's Canada unit, got an expanded role as executive vice president of growth initiatives and president of international. Kempczinski, in his newly created role, will work closely with Zoghbi, including on mergers and acquisitions, Kraft said.
Zoghbi and Kempczinski begin their new roles immediately and report to Cahill.
Also Thursday, Kraft reported that it lost $398 million, or 68 cents per share, in the fourth quarter, after earning $931 million, or $1.54 per share, a year earlier. Excluding a variety of factors, Kraft said it earned more than Wall Street had anticipated.
Fourth-quarter sales rose 2.2 percent to $4.7 billion, topping analysts' forecast of $4.63 billion. Sales rose in cheese and refrigerated meals, the company's largest businesses, but fell across most of its other categories.
Shares of Kraft fell 2.4 percent to $64.56 in after-hours trading. The shares are still trading above where they were when Cahill was brought on as CEO.
jwohl@tribpub.com
