The sauces unit raked in about $15.4 billion in sales in 2024, while the grocery business generated about $10.4 billion in sales

International News via Reuters:

Kraft Heinz said on Tuesday it would split into two publicly-listed companies, one focusing on the sauces business and the other on groceries, as the U.S. packaged goods maker aims to revive growth after years of muted sales. The one, called the “Global Taste Elevation Co,” houses brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia and Kraft Mac & Cheese, while the other, called “North American Grocery Co,” consists of Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables labels.

The sauces unit raked in about $15.4 billion in sales in 2024, while the grocery business generated about $10.4 billion in sales

“Kraft Heinz’s brands are iconic and beloved, but the complexity of our current structure makes it challenging to allocate capital effectively, prioritize initiatives and drive scale in our most promising areas,” said Miguel Patricio, executive chair of the Kraft Heinz board said.

The company expects the tax-free spinoff to close in the second half of 2026.

Kraft Heinz said in May it was looking at opportunities for mergers and acquisitions to shore up shareholder value. It has been struggling like other packaged food companies as consumers shop for healthier and more affordable condiments and snacks.

The company’s shares were up about 1% in premarket trading. The stock has lost about 21% of its value over the past twelve months.

Reporting by Juveria Tabassum and Savyata Mishra in Bengaluru

Blocked road access to people hit by Afghanistan’s earthquake have been the biggest challenge for response teams and rescue efforts

International News via Reuters:

Blocked road access to people hit by Afghanistan’s earthquake have been the biggest challenge for response teams and rescue efforts in the impacted mountainous regions are relying on helicopters, a United Nations official said on Tuesday.

“There’s been lots of landslides and rock falls, and access has been very limited to everybody in the first 24 hours,” Indrika Ratwatte, the United Nations’ humanitarian coordinator in Afghanistan, said in a press briefing, speaking from Kabul.

“The biggest challenge is to reach these remote areas with the road access extremely damaged,” he added.

Reporting by Ludwig Burger, Editing by Rachel More

Afghanistan is prone to deadly earthquakes, particularly in the Hindu Kush mountain range

International News via Reuters:

The death toll from Afghanistan’s worst earthquake in years jumped to over 1,100 on Tuesday with thousands more injured, an aid group said, as difficult terrain hindered rescue efforts in isolated villages of the country’s mountainous eastern region.

At least 1,124 people have died, 3,251 have been injured and over 8,000 houses have been destroyed, said the Afghan Red Crescent Society, a humanitarian group working in the region, adding that more people are feared trapped under rubble.

The U.N. coordinator in Afghanistan said the toll was likely to rise.

Afghanistan is prone to deadly earthquakes, particularly in the Hindu Kush mountain range, where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet.

The earthquake, with a magnitude of 6, struck around midnight local time on Monday, at a shallow depth of 10 km (6 miles), with the eastern provinces of Kunar and Nangarhar being the worst hit.

Rescue operations were carried out in four badly hit villages in Kunar on Monday and efforts will now be focused on reaching more remote mountain areas, said Ehsanullah Ehsan, the provincial head of disaster management.

“We cannot accurately predict how many bodies might still be trapped under the rubble,” said Ehsan. “Our effort is to complete these operations as soon as possible and to begin distributing aid to the affected families.”

Mountainous terrain and inclement weather have hindered rescuers reaching remote areas along the Pakistani border where the quake flattened hundreds of mud-and-brick homes.

Access for vehicles along narrow mountain roads was the main obstacle, said Ehsan, adding machinery was being brought in to clear roads of debris.

On Tuesday, a line of ambulances was on the damaged mountain road trying to reach Kunar villages, as helicopters flew in, bringing aid supplies and taking the injured to hospitals, according to a Reuters witness.

Some of those injured have been transferred to hospitals in Kabul and the adjacent province of Nangarhar, said Ehsan.

Thousands of children were at risk, the United Nations Children’s Fund warned on Tuesday.

UNICEF said it was sending medicines, warm clothing, tents and tarpaulins for shelter, and hygiene items such as soap, detergent, towels, sanitary pads, and water buckets.

Taliban soldiers were deployed in the area, providing help and security. The disaster has further stretched the war-torn nation’s Taliban administration, already grappling with a sharp drop in foreign aid and deportations of hundreds of thousands of Afghans by neighbouring countries.

Rescue teams and authorities are trying to dispose of animal carcasses quickly so as to minimise the risk of contamination to water resources, a U.N. official said on Monday.

“Damaged roads, ongoing aftershocks, and remote locations of many villages severely impede the delivery of aid,” the World Health Organization said, adding that over 12,000 people had been affected by the quake.

“The pre-earthquake fragility of the health system means local capacity is overwhelmed, creating total dependence on external actors,” it said.

Food and tents were desperately needed, said Safiullah Noorzai from Aseel, a humanitarian tech platform with networks around Afghanistan. With their houses in ruins, many people were living in the open amid a fear of aftershocks, Noorzai added.

AID CUTS

The rescue and relief work has struggled in the face of tight resources in the war-torn, impoverished nation of 42 million people and limited global help in the aftermath of the tragedy.

So far, Britain has allocated 1 million pounds ($1.35 million) to support the efforts of U.N. and the International Red Cross in delivering critical healthcare and emergency supplies.

India delivered 1,000 tents and was moving 15 tonnes of food supplies to Kunar, with more relief materials to be sent on Tuesday.

Other nations such as China, the United Arab Emirates, the European Union, Pakistan and Iran have pledged help but aid is yet to arrive.

Afghanistan has been badly hit by U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision in January to cut funding to its humanitarian arm USAID and reductions in other foreign aid programmes.

Crises elsewhere in the world, along with donor frustration over the Taliban’s policies toward women and curbs on aid workers have been a factor in funding cuts, according to diplomats and aid officials.

($1 = 0.7402 pounds)

Reporting by Sayed Hassib in Mazar Dara, Kunar Province; Mohammad Yunus Yawar in Kabul, Charlotte Greenfield in Islamabad; Writing by Sudipto Ganguly; editing by Michael Perry, YP Rajesh and Raju Gopalakrishnan

Freixe is replaced by Nespresso chief Philipp Navratil

International News via Reuters:

Nestle has fired its CEO Laurent Freixe after just one year in the job after an investigation into an undisclosed “romantic relationship”, ousting its second CEO in a year and throwing the Swiss food giant into the deepest leadership chaos in decades.

Freixe is replaced by Nespresso chief Philipp Navratil, a rising star at the world’s biggest packaged food company, which has seen slowing sales in its main businesses since the pandemic.

Shares in the maker of Nescafe coffee and KitKat chocolate bars were down 1% following Freixe’s sudden dismissal, which comes a year after the predecessor Mark Schneider was axed for underperformance.

The dismissal of Freixe follows an investigation into an undisclosed romantic relationship with a direct subordinate which breached Nestle’s code of business conduct, Nestle said late on Monday.

The company said concerns about a possible relationship were raised by staff via internal company hotline, although an initial investigation was unsubstantiated. Freixe had initially denied the relationship to the board, a company spokesperson said.

When staff concerns persisted, Nestle said it ordered an investigation overseen by Chairman Paul Bulcke and Lead Independent Director, Pablo Isla, with the support of independent outside counsel. Swiss media reported that Swiss lawyers Baer & Karrer helped with the inquiry.

Freixe, who spent 39 years with Nestle, will receive no exit package following his departure, the company told Reuters.

“The loss of two CEOs and a chairman in a year is of historic proportions for Nestle,” said Ingo Speich, Head of Corporate Governance and Sustainability at Deka, a top-30 Nestle investor.

“The new CEO needs to fix the business model and bring volumes back. He needs to do better M&A and focus more on emerging markets.”

The Nestle veteran’s abrupt removal comes a year after Schneider’s ouster and 2-1/2 months after longstanding chair Paul Bulcke announced he would step down in 2026 in one of the most turbulent periods in the company’s 159-year history.

In a short statement Bulcke thanked Freixe for his years of service at Nestle, but said the dismissal was a “necessary decision”.

Freixe was not immediately available to comment when contacted via email.

STABILITY SOUGHT

Nestle’s shares, a bedrock of the Swiss stock exchange, have lost almost a third of their value over the past five years, underperforming European peers.

Freixe’s appointment failed to halt the slide, with the company’s shares shedding 17% during his leadership, disappointing investors.

In July, Nestle launched a review of its underperforming vitamins business that could lead to the divestment of some brands after first-half sales volumes missed expectations.

“The market did not particularly like Freixe, and the restructuring goals were also put on the back burner,” said Maurizio Porfiri, chief investment officer at trading firm Maverix.

“Another fresh start is needed, and it is time for more stability to return to the management at this global corporation,” he told Reuters.

Freixe’s dismissal was featured on the front page of Swiss newspapers, with Neue Zuercher Zeitung noting that Nestle had lost its “legendary stability” where CEOs stayed for years before eventually becoming chairmen.

The latest change is likely to leave questions unanswered about Nestle’s mid-term direction and “keep a lid on the equity story until we hear more about Mr. Navratil’s plan,” JPMorgan analysts said in a research note.

Analysts said the news of Freixe’s ouster was unlikely to reassure investors because it was the second time in a year that the company had appointed a new boss without carrying out a thorough search for a replacement.

The note also expressed concern that incoming CEO Navratil looked as though he would be “boxed in” by Freixe’s turnaround strategy for now at a time when the market remained unconvinced.

Patrik Schwendimann, an analyst at Zuercher Kantonalbank, said the CEO could lead to “paralysing uncertainty,” at Nestle, although the switch could also accelerate the company’s recovery.

“At first glance, the Swiss Philipp Navratil is a good Swiss compromise between the two predecessors Mark Schneider and Laurent Freixe,” Schwendimann said.

Writing by Dave Graham and John Revill; additional reporting by Oliver Hirt, Editing by Andrea Ricci, Muralikumar Anantharaman and Louise Heavens8