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With $5.6 billion Hostess acquisition, J.M. Smucker bets on snacks as its next big growth engine
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As seen in Modern Retail
J.M. Smucker's acquisition of Hostess Brands secures sugary snack icons like Twinkies and expands Smucker's convenience store presence, highlighting a shift toward indulgent snacks in a health-conscious industry.
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Chad Lusk, managing director in Alvarez & Marsal’s Consumer and Retail Group and a former CMO at Hostess Brands, said snacking has become a fast-growing segment for many CPG giants. “Hostess is an interesting play for J.M. Smucker, because it’s [Smucker] not a snacking company today,” he said, pointing to its coffee and peanut butter businesses. “But it’s [acquisition] a great way to jump into snacking, especially since they’re used to operating legacy, iconic brands.”
However, Lusk explained that this sale is in contrast with other food conglomerates that have approached M&A in recent years. For instance, Mondelez and Kellogg’s have leaned into scooping up better-for-you bars, like Clif and Kind, respectively.