Type: Private
On the web: http://www.delmonte.com
Employees: 14,700
Employee growth: (0.7%)

How does Del Monte's garden grow? Quite well. The company is one of the largest makers of branded canned fruit, vegetables, and soups in the US. Del Monte Foods manufactures tomato-based items, such as ketchup and tomato sauce, under brands College Inn, Del Monte, and Contadina. It owns no farms, but instead purchases fruits and vegetables from growers. The company helps pets grow, too, with a stable of popular brands: 9Lives, Gravy Train, Milk-Bone, and Meow Mix. Del Monte Foods makes private-label products as well as ingredients for other food makers, and supplies products to foodservice operators. A trio of private equity firms led by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) took Del Monte Foods private in 2011.

Key numbers for fiscal year ending April, 2010:
Sales: $3,739.8M
One year growth: 3.1%
Net income: $244.3M
Income growth: 41.8%

Officers:
CEO and Director: David J. (Dave) West
Interim CEO and Director: Neil Harrison
COO: Nils Lommerin

Competitors:
ConAgra
Dole Food
Nestlé Purina PetCare

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