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Food: Kraft

Ticker Symbol: KFT

Kraft Website

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About the company

Headquartered in Northfield, Illinois, Kraft Foods (KFT) is the largest food and beverage company in the U.S., and is the second biggest worldwide.

Kraft was founded in 1903 by James L. Kraft and, after inventing pasteurized processed cheese not requiring refrigeration, would eventually go public as the Kraft Cheese Company. Kraft bought cream cheese producer Phenix Cheese Company in 1928 and was subsequently bought by the National Dairy Products Corporation. By 1976, company would change its name to Kraft Inc, and in 1979 the company merged with Dart Industries to become Dart & Kraft. This new company would eventually spin off its nonfood divisions with the remaining food entity known as Kraft Inc yet again. Phillip Morris Companies bought Kraft in 1988 for $12.9 billion and merged it with General Foods in 1985 and Nabisco in 2000. Kraft was spun off by Altria Group in 2001 and is now a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

Kraft features some of the best known brands in the world including Jell-O, Chips Ahoy!, Oreo, Cool Whip, Capri Sun, Crystal Light, Planters, Fig Newtons, Kool-Aid, Kraft cheeses, Maxwell House, Nabisco, Oscar Mayer, Ritz, Shake 'n Bake, and Stove Top stuffing.

Kraft Competitors:

Tier 1 Competitors: General Mills (GIS), Kellogg Company (K), Conagra Foods (CAG)
Tier 2 Competitors: J&J Snack Foods (JJSF), Ralcorp Holdings (RAH), PepsiCo (PEP), H.J. Heinz Company (HNZ)