PepsiCo Acquires Siete Foods in $1.2 Billion Deal

PepsiCo announced on Tuesday that it will acquire Garza Food Ventures, the parent company of Siete Foods, for $1.2 billion. This strategic move aims to enhance PepsiCo’s snacking portfolio in response to a growing preference among consumers for private-label brands, driven by their cost-conscious purchasing behavior.

Siete Foods, with backing from actor Eva Longoria, is renowned for its grain-free tortilla chips and taco shells. Alongside these products, Siete manufactures enchilada sauce and Mexican wedding cookies, which are distributed across 40,000 retail outlets in the United States, including major chains like Target and Whole Foods.

Founded in 2014 by Veronica Garza, Siete Foods is a family-run business based in Texas, operated by the Garza family. The acquisition comes amid a backdrop of consumers shifting towards more affordable snacking alternatives following several quarters of price increases by packaged food manufacturers aimed at mitigating elevated input costs.

The trend towards mergers and acquisitions within the packaged food sector has been vigorous, as demonstrated by this latest transaction. PepsiCo, the owner of the Frito-Lay brand, has been actively working to diversify its offerings by introducing new flavor variations under well-known brands such as Lay’s, Doritos, and Cheetos. This initiative seeks to bolster the appeal of their products amidst a recorded 4% decline in North American snacking volumes during the most recent quarter, reported in July.

The deal is anticipated to reach completion by the first half of 2025. Initial reports by The Wall Street Journal on Monday indicated that PepsiCo was in advanced negotiations to purchase Siete Foods.

PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay North America division, which specializes in “convenient foods,” is headquartered in Plano. This acquisition is seen as a strategic move to reinforce its position in the competitive snacking market.

Reporting for this development was conducted by Juveria Tabassum, with editing by Janane Venkatraman and Sriraj Kalluvila.