Mergers & Acquisitions

Taking a closer look at Forbes' 29th annual ranking of the world's richest is littered with consumer goods executives. Here, we take a look at the top 10 billionaires in the world across Food and Beverage.

CFO of Kimberly-Clar, Mark Buthman, announced his plans to retire at the end of 2015, after 33 years with the company. Maria Henry will be his successor and serve as SVP and CFO effective April 27 for a smooth transition.

Mondelez International will sell its 50 percent interest in Ajinomoto General Foods to its joint venture partner, Ajinomoto Co, as part of its ongoing efforts to further focus its portfolio on snacking products.

In September Hershey announced the retirement of CFO David Tacka. Last week the company named Patricia Little to succeed him, effective March 16.

Mondelez International has sold Betabox, LLC to VaynerMedia as part of its Mobile Futures initiative to create and incubate new mobile ventures in 90 days.

In the world of consumer goods, Amway is a rare success story. The company's direct-selling model has been nothing but successful, but this didn't come about by chance. Armed with a structered, yet flexible product development process, and growing network of external partners, Amway and its Open Innovation Team, is well on its way to turning a good business into a great business.

McCormick & Company signed an agreement to purchase Drogheria & Alimentari (D&A), a privately held company based in Italy for $97 million. D&A is a leader in spices and seasonings with annual sales of approximately $57 million.

Campbell's shared its new cost reduction plan as well as an initiative to simplify its organization structure to improve agility in the marketplace. The company expects these to generate annual cost savings of $200 million over a three-year period.