ConAgra Foods, Inc., Omaha, Neb., successfully completed its acquisition of Ralcorp Holdings, Inc., St. Louis, for $90 in cash per share of Ralcorp common stock. The closing of the transaction follows the approval of the acquisition by Ralcorp’s shareholders on Jan.29, and the receipt of all required regulatory approvals. With 36,000 employees and sales of approximately $18 billion annually, the combined company is one of the largest packaged food companies in North America. The transaction also positions ConAgra Foods as the largest private brand packaged food business in North America, with approximately $4.5 billion in combined annual private brand sales.
“We are excited to have closed the transaction and welcome our talented new team members from Ralcorp to the ConAgra Foods family,” says Gary Rodkin, chief executive officer of ConAgra Foods. “We are now in a position to begin the most substantial aspects of integration planning, and look forward to learning from and working with our new colleagues. This important acquisition reinforces and accelerates our ‘Recipe for Growth’ strategy, which also includes growth in our core business and adjacencies and expansion internationally.”