Ready Meals

Tyson Sells Circle Foods to Ajinomoto Foods North America

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Tyson Foods is getting out of the tortilla, burrito and Indian flatbread-making business, which is just a small part of the multinational chicken, beef, pork and ready meals supplier’s $38 billion in annual sales. The Springdale, Arkansas-headquartered company has reached an agreement to sell its Circle Foods unit, which was acquired in 2014, to the Ajinomoto Group’s frozen foods division in the United States. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

CF Nuevo Grille Snack BurritoNuevo Grille brand snack burritos are among frozen products produced by San Diego, California-based Circle Foods.“We anticipate the transaction to be completed this spring, and are working with Ajinomoto Windsor on a transition plan for operations,” announced Tyson in a statement. “As part of this transaction, we will retain some elements and assets of our San Diego operations. Our primary focus will be to continue delivering results for our customers by producing high quality products.”

Circle Foods’ line of foodservice and retail SKUs ranges from TortillaLand brand uncooked tortillas and Nuevo Grille brand Mexican food to Rotiland brand uncooked roti-chapati and fulka-roti Indian flatbreads and private label products.

Name Change

Ajinomoto new logoMeanwhile, Ajinomoto Windsor is changing its name to Ajinomoto Foods North America. The Ontario, California-headquartered company’s rebranding utilizes the Japanese parent corporation’s global brand logo.

The new look is designed to “help distinguish Ajinomoto Foods North America as one of the leading high-quality seasonings and food companies in the United States, Canada and Mexico, said Bernard Kreilmann, president and chief operating officer.

Ajinomoto Foods North America is a major producer and marketer of Asian, Mexican and Italian-style frozen food products, as well as frozen rice. Acquired from Windsor Quality Holdings by the US subsidiary of Tokyo-headquartered Ajinomoto Co. for approximately $800 million in 2014, the company’s brands include José Olé, Posada, Taipei, Ling Ling, Golden Tiger, Bernardi and Fred’s. It operates a number of production plants in eight states including California, Oregon, Texas, Missouri and Mississippi.