Hilllshire Brands to acquire Birds Eye, Vlasic maker Pinnacle Foods

Hillshire Brands Co. is making a big bet on the power of combinations such as Jimmy Dean sausage with Birds Eye vegetables or a Vlasic pickle alongside a sandwich made with Hillshire deli meat as it announced its plan to buy Pinnacle Foods Inc. for $6.6 billion in cash and stock.

Combined, the companies have about $6.6 billion in annual sales in products such as frozen, refrigerated and shelved groceries. Hillshire hopes to find new opportunities to push its brands onto store shelves and to bring Pinnacle Foods’ brands into refrigerated cases.

“These portfolios complement one another,” Hillshire CEO Sean Connolly said in an interview.

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