Warren Buffett to Retire From Kraft Heinz Board
February 23 2018 - 7:16PM
Dow Jones News
By Aisha Al-Muslim and Annie Gasparro
Billionaire investor Warren Buffett is retiring from the board
of directors of Kraft Heinz Co. at the end of his term in April,
the food and beverage company said Friday.
Mr. Buffett, the 87-year-old chairman and chief executive of
Berkshire Hathaway Inc., will retire at the upcoming Kraft Heinz
annual meeting of shareholders on April 23. He decided to retire
from the Kraft Heinz board as he decreases his travel commitments,
the company said.
Mr. Buffett's "many invaluable contributions to Kraft Heinz will
have a lasting impact on the Company for years to come," Kraft
Heinz's board chairman Alex Behring said in prepared remarks. "The
Board of Directors looks forward to his continued partnership as
Chairman of our largest shareholder, Berkshire Hathaway."
Mr. Buffett, who will be 88 years old in August, has been trying
decrease his travel obligations in recent years. There have also
been questions about the succession plan for who will take over at
Berkshire Hathaway when Mr. Buffett is out of the picture.
Last month, Mr. Buffett elevated two longtime Berkshire Hathaway
executives, Gregory Abel and Ajit Jain, to vice chairman roles at
the company, all but confirming years of speculation that one of
them is in line to replace him.
Berkshire, which comprises about 60 businesses across multiple
sectors, has been led by Mr. Buffett for more than 50 years.
Kraft Heinz also announced Friday that the board intends to
nominate Alexandre Van Damme to stand for election to fill Mr.
Buffett's vacancy. Mr. Van Damme, a Belgian businessman, is a board
member of Anheuser-Busch Inbev and Restaurant Brands International,
as well as a director of DKMS, a bone marrow donor center.
3G Capital, a Brazilian investment firm, bought H.J. Heinz Co.
along with Mr. Buffett's firm Berkshire Hathaway in 2013. Its
partners now run Kraft Heinz Co., which was formed in a 2015
merger.
A year ago, Kraft Heinz made a $143 billion offer to buy
Unilever PLC, but it was rebuffed as the European consumer giant
said it wasn't a good fit with Kraft Heinz strategically or
culturally.
Since then, investors have been waiting for Kraft Heinz's next
bid. In a presentation last week, Kraft Heinz Chief Executive
Bernardo Hees, who is also a partner at 3G, said it's looking for
its next acquisition.
Kraft Heinz's brands include Kraft, Heinz, Capri Sun, Jell-O,
Kool-Aid, Lunchables, Maxwell House, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia,
Planters, Smart Ones and Velveeta.
Write to Aisha Al-Muslim at aisha.al-muslim@wsj.com and Annie
Gasparro at annie.gasparro@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 23, 2018 19:01 ET (00:01 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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