Tyson Foods is sticking to its plan to sell its three non-protein businesses, with hopes of having them sold before the end of the 2017 calendar year.
During the Tyson Foods third-quarter earnings call on August 7, Tyson Foods Chief Financial Officer Dennis Leatherby discussed the sale of Sara Lee, Van's and Kettle. All three businesses are currently part of Tyson’s Prepared Foods segment.
“We anticipate we’ll close the transactions by the end of calendar 2017 and expect to use the proceeds to pay down debt,” Leatherby said without naming potential buyers.
Tyson Foods in April announced its intent to divest of the three businesses in order to better focus on its protein-related brands.
Sara Lee Frozen Bakery, the Kettle business and Van’s produce items such as frozen desserts, waffles, breakfast bars and soups, sauces and sides. The company stated in April that any sale would include the Chef Pierre, Bistro Collection, Kettle Collection and Van’s brands, a license to use the Sara Lee brand in various channels, as well as the company’s prepared foods facilities in Tarboro, North Carolina, Fort Worth, Texas, and Traverse City, Michigan.
Leatherby noted that the Sara Lee, Kettle and Van’s business results are excluded from the company’s 2018 outloook.
