Kraft Natural Cheese

Kraft Natural Cheese is the name used by Lactalis Heritage Group, Inc. for an American cheese-processing business created through the separation of Kraft Heinz's natural-cheese activities in the United States and Canada and their sale to Lactalis, the French dairy conglomerate. The business is distinct from the broader Kraft Heinz portfolio and from the Philadelphia cream-cheese brand, which was specifically excluded from the transaction that transferred the natural-cheese operations. The business is centered on cheese rather than on a broad grocery portfolio. Its brand group includes Kraft, Cracker Barrel, Breakstone's, Knudsen, Polly-O, Athenos, and Hoffman's. These brands cover a range of natural-cheese and dairy offerings associated with household cooking, meal preparation, snacking, deli use, and foodservice-oriented applications. The Kraft name provides the portfolio with its most recognizable consumer identity, while the other brands retain their own market histories and product associations. In September 2020, Lactalis announced an agreement to acquire Kraft Heinz's natural-cheese business for $3.2 billion. The announced transaction included the Kraft, Breakstone's, Knudsen, Polly-O, Athenos, and Hoffman's brands. The transaction did not include Philadelphia. Following the separation and sale, the business became associated with Lactalis Heritage Group and operated as Kraft Natural Cheese. Public reference material identifies Kraft Natural Cheese primarily as a corporate cheese business and brand portfolio rather than as a single product with one founding date or one founder. As a result, a standalone founding year, headquarters, executive roster, and separate public-market listing cannot be established from the available material. Its historical importance lies chiefly in the transfer of a substantial North American natural-cheese portfolio from Kraft Heinz to Lactalis.

Kraft Natural Cheese emerged from the restructuring of Kraft Heinz's North American cheese activities. Rather than representing a cheese brand with a separately documented founding story, the name identifies a business assembled around Kraft Heinz's natural-cheese operations in the United States and Canada. The decisive transition occurred in September 2020, when Lactalis announced that it would acquire the business for $3.2 billion. The announced scope covered a group of established cheese and dairy brands, including Kraft, Cracker Barrel, Breakstone's, Knudsen, Polly-O, Athenos, and Hoffman's. Philadelphia was excluded from the deal, leaving that brand outside the transferred natural-cheese business. After the separation from Kraft Heinz and its sale to Lactalis, the operation became associated with Lactalis Heritage Group, Inc., doing business as Kraft Natural Cheese. Lactalis is a French conglomerate with a substantial dairy focus, making the transaction a move of the North American portfolio into a company whose wider business is concentrated in dairy products. The resulting business is best understood as a multi-brand cheese company. Kraft serves as the principal name in the portfolio, while the other acquired brands contribute distinct product identities and regional or category associations. The available reference material does not provide a detailed account of manufacturing sites, later product launches, leadership appointments, financial performance beyond the announced transaction value, or a separate corporate headquarters. Those details are therefore not asserted here.

• 2020

  Lactalis announces the natural-cheese acquisition

  [1]Kraft Natural Cheeseen.wikipedia.org

  Lactalis announced an agreement to purchase Kraft Heinz's natural-cheese business in the United States and Canada for $3.2 billion.

• 2020

  Philadelphia excluded from the transaction

  [1]Kraft Natural Cheeseen.wikipedia.org

  The announced transaction transferred a group of Kraft Heinz cheese brands but specifically excluded the Philadelphia brand.

• Business operates under Lactalis Heritage Group

  [1]Kraft Natural Cheeseen.wikipedia.org

  Following the separation and sale, the business became associated with Lactalis Heritage Group, Inc., doing business as Kraft Natural Cheese.

A mainstream, household-oriented cheese portfolio serving everyday cooking, meal preparation, snacking, and related dairy occasions in the United States and Canada.

• Natural cheese

  Kraft

  The core Kraft cheese identity within the portfolio. It represents the principal consumer-facing name associated with Kraft Natural Cheese and covers natural-cheese products sold for everyday household use. The available reference does not identify a single flagship variety or a complete product catalogue.

• Natural cheese

  Cracker Barrel

  A cheese brand included in the natural-cheese business transferred to Lactalis. It forms part of the portfolio's mainstream consumer cheese offering. Specific varieties, packaging formats, and current market availability are not detailed in the available reference material.

• Dairy and cheese

  Breakstone's

  A dairy-oriented brand included in the acquired portfolio. Within Kraft Natural Cheese, Breakstone's contributes a separate branded identity alongside Kraft and the other transferred cheese businesses. The supplied reference does not provide a detailed product-level breakdown.

• Dairy and cheese

  Knudsen

  Knudsen is one of the established brands transferred with Kraft Heinz's natural-cheese operations. It forms part of the portfolio managed under the Kraft Natural Cheese business, although the available material does not specify its principal products or geographic emphasis.

• Cheese

  Polly-O

  A cheese brand included in the Lactalis acquisition of Kraft Heinz's North American natural-cheese business. Polly-O broadens the portfolio beyond the Kraft name, but no detailed product descriptions or launch dates are supplied in the reference material.

• Specialty cheese

  Athenos

  Athenos is part of the transferred brand group and adds a specialty-cheese identity to Kraft Natural Cheese's portfolio. The available source confirms its inclusion in the transaction but does not establish a complete range, product chronology, or current distribution details.

• Cheese

  Hoffman's

  Hoffman's was included among the brands transferred from Kraft Heinz to Lactalis. It is therefore part of the Kraft Natural Cheese business structure, though the supplied reference provides no further detail about its product range, positioning, or markets.

• 2020

  Sale of Kraft Heinz's natural-cheese business to LactalisM&A

  Background

  Kraft Heinz separated its natural-cheese activities in the United States and Canada from the rest of its portfolio and agreed to sell the business to Lactalis.

  Action taken

  Lactalis announced a $3.2 billion acquisition covering the Kraft, Cracker Barrel, Breakstone's, Knudsen, Polly-O, Athenos, and Hoffman's brands, while excluding Philadelphia.

  Aftermath

  The transferred operations became associated with Lactalis Heritage Group, Inc., doing business as Kraft Natural Cheese.

  Announced acquisition value. $3.2 billion (Announced in September 2020)

  Source

1. 1Kraft Natural Cheeseen.wikipedia.org