Category: Canned & Preserved Foods

CAMDEN, NJ. — The Campbell Soup Co. will invest approximately $230 million over the next three years to transform its supply chain and fuel business growth. As part of the effort, the company said it will invest in upgrading manufacturing sites, leverage its network of co-manufacturing partners, close inefficient plants and shift production to more modern and effective facilities.

The Camden-based company said it already has spent $80 million of the $230 million on the projects.

“To fuel growth and transform our manufacturing and distribution network, we must invest and further strengthen our supply chain,” said Dan Poland, chief supply chain officer, Campbell Soup Co. “By leveraging our best-in-class in-house capabilities combined with the expertise of trusted manufacturing partners, we will continue to make the highest quality products, with a more agile, flexible, and cost-effective manufacturing network. We continue to evaluate optimization opportunities across the network to build our supply chain of the future.”

Campbell Soup’s plans include the phased closing of the company’s plant in Tualatin, Ore. Campbell Soup acquired the plant as part of its purchase of Pacific Foods in 2017. The facility makes Pacific’s organic soup, broth and plant-based beverages. Campbell Soup said the first phase of the closing will begin in August and will impact 120 of the plant’s 330 employees, with operations expected to be completely halted by July 2026. Soup and broth production will be shifted to other thermal and aseptic plants in the company’s network, Campbell Soup said.

Meanwhile, Campbell Soup’s plant in Jeffersonville, Ind., will be reorganized to specialize in the production of Late July tortilla chips, with the facility’s production of kettle potato chips shifting to plants in Charlotte, NC, and Hanover, Pa. Regional snack brands will continue to be produced in Jeffersonville, the company said.

Included in Campbell Soup’s $230 million investment plans are projects in Maxton, NC; Hanover; and Franklin, Wis.

The company said it is investing $150 million in new aseptic soup production in Maxton. In Hanover, Campbell Soup will invest $72 million to add more potato chip kettles. In Franklin, the company has earmarked $8 million to expand capacity for tortilla chip production.

In addition to those three investments, Campbell Soup Co. earlier detailed plans to expand production of Goldfish crackers at its plant in Richmond, Utah. The new site, which is expected to be operational by the end of 2024, will increase the plant’s output of Goldfish by 50% and will add approximately 80 new roles.

NEW YORK — Campbell Soup Co. has transformed its portfolio over the past few years in several ways: by focusing on brand scale and breadth, reforming the supply chain, innovating in product development and consistently delivering on what the company says.

Coming out of a “prolonged period of macroeconomic and environmental challenges,” the company is currently at an inflection point, said Mark Clouse, president and chief executive officer. He spoke June 13 during a “virtual fireside chat” to the Evercore ISI Consumer and Retail Conference in New York.

“… I can tell you with a high degree of confidence, I really feel terrific about where we are, and I feel really good about how I think we’re positioned against competition both from the brand as well as (the) self-help story on margin and earnings growth,” he said.

Campbell Soup’s third-quarter net earnings fell 17%, but net sales were up 6% over the year-ago period due to the company’s Sovos Brands acquisition. Although Meals and Beverages sales rose 15% in the quarter, sales in the Snack business slipped 2%.

The company has targeted the snacking sector over the past two years, which Clouse called “a little overly ambitious in our projections,” although he added that he has no concern about the “structural nature of the behavior of snacking” and what it means to consumers.

He said the company’s portfolio “is really well-positioned in what I would call the more elevated … added value experience spaces, which is really the primary driver of growth in snacking, where people are seeking either unique flavors, texture, more unique experience.”

One example is the recent debut of Pepperidge Farm Goldfish crackers with a spicy dill pickle flavor.

A consequence of the pivot toward snacks is the company’s soup business now represents less than 25% of the total portfolio, Clouse said. While he noted soup was “still an important business,” snack products in the form of “eight power brands” now comprise two-thirds of Campbell Soup’s total business.

Those brands include Goldfish, plus Late July chips and Pepperidge Farm cookies. Clouse indicated on a June 5 analyst call the latter two were a bright spot in what he expects to be short-term pressure on the category.

However, the company still continues to innovate in the soup category by recently introducing a line of spicy soups and broths under both its namesake label and the Swanson brand.

Meanwhile, Campbell Soup is making about $230 million in supply chain investments this year through 2027 to upgrade manufacturing facilities, close some less-efficient plants and move production to more modern ones.

Clouse told the Evercore ISI conference that while he wasn’t “anxious to go out and do more M&A,” he found the growth in authentic, ethnic snacking intriguing to watch.

“And the ability to bring more of that authenticity into the portfolio is yet another place of added value,” he said, adding, “But I feel very good about how our portfolio is positioned to match ultimately with where consumers are.”

Campbell Soup plans to hold an Analyst Day in September, its first in 2.5 years.

“So, we are looking forward to seeing everybody in September,” Clouse said. “I think it will be a great moment to take a little bit of stock on where we’ve been, and more importantly, talk about where we’re headed in the future.”