UPDATE 1-Ralcorp appoints activist investor to board

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Oct 3 (Reuters) - Food company Ralcorp Holdings Inc said on Wednesday it appointed investor Keith Meister to its board of directors.

Meister's firm, Corvex Management, revealed a stake in Ralcorp in August and urged the company to either sell itself, buy another company, or change its strategy nearly a year after Ralcorp rejected a takeover offer from ConAgra Foods Inc .

Meister, 39, will also join the company's strategy and financial oversight committee, which evaluates strategic opportunities.

"We believe the company has tremendous opportunities to create value and reward shareholders," Meister said in a statement. "I look forward to working collaboratively with the board and management to identify and evaluate those alternatives."

Morningstar analyst Erin Lash said that trying to sell Ralcorp could be difficult, since not many companies are looking to beef up their presence in private label food, where Ralcorp operates.

ConAgra is one company that is interested in private label, but given the reception it was given last year, she was not sure they would want to take another look.

ConAgra, which makes Chef Boyardee pasta and Banquet frozen dinners, offered three times to buy Ralcorp, but the company refused.

Meister, who founded Corvex in late 2010 after working for seven years for Carl Icahn, was not immediately available to comment further.

Corvex owns 5.3 percent of Ralcorp, which makes private-label, or store brand, foods.

(Reporting By Martinne Geller and Michael Erman in New York; Editing by Carol Bishopric and Andre Grenon)

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Keywords: RALCORP MEISTER/