ST. LOUIS — Post Holdings, Inc. has had discussions to combine with ConAgra Foods, Inc.’s Lamb Weston potato business in a deal valued at about $6 billion, according to an article in The Wall Street Journal.
Citing people familiar with the matter, the W.S.J. said the talks have stalled but could be revived. The people said ConAgra currently is focused on its plan to spin off the Lamb Weston business this year. Lamb Weston makes frozen french fries, mashed potatoes, tater tots and other potato products.
Since Sean Connolly took the helm at ConAgra Foods early last year, the company has announced a series of major changes, including the sale of its private brands business to TreeHouse Foods and the separation of its consumer brands business and the Lamb Weston frozen potato business into two independent, publicly traded companies. The company also announced plans to lay off 1,500 office-based employees around the world and move its headquarters from Omaha to Chicago.
For Post Holdings, a potential transaction would be the largest in the company’s history. The company has been active on the acquisition front over the past several years, buying Michael Foods Inc. for approximately $2.5 billion in 2014 and MOM Brands Co. for more than $1 billion in 2015.