Campbell�s buys Wolfgang Puck soup business

Campbell Soup Co. is moving into the organic-soup section of the supermarket with the purchase of the Wolfgang Puck soup business from Country Gourmet Foods L.L.C., the company said today.

The price was not disclosed. Campbell said Wolfgang Puck soups had annual sales of about $22 million.

The deal will not have a material impact on its results for fiscal 2009, which starts in August, Campbell said.

Separately, Campbell signed a licensing agreement with Wolfgang Puck Worldwide Inc. to use the restaurateur's eponymous brand on soup, stock and broth in North American retail stores, with an option to use the brand in other categories.

Campbell said industry estimates of U.S. sales of organic soup, excluding dried soup, were $150 million last year, with a 23 percent annual growth rate since 2003.

"As the world's leading soup company, Campbell must expand its role in the organic segment of the market," Campbell's president and chief executive officer, Douglas R. Conant, said in a news release.

Campbell competitor, General Mills Inc., which owns Progresso soups, sells organic soups under the Muir Glen brand.

Campbell shares were priced at $33.16 soon after the New York Stock Exchange opened today, down $0.30 (0.90 percent) from the previous close.

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Campbell�s buys Wolfgang Puck soup business

Campbell�s buys Wolfgang Puck soup business

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