Conagra Says It's Not Being Investigated in Iraq Probe

Conagra Foods on Wednesday said it is not the target of a federal investigation into possible fraud and corruption in supplying the U.S. military in Iraq, denying information in a newspaper report.

The maker of Healthy Choice frozen dinners, Hebrew National hot dogs and Peter Pan peanut butter said it received a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Defense in January connected to its dealings with a Kuwaiti firm, Public Warehousing, that serves as the Army's primary food supplier.

Conagra said it is a witness in the investigation and has provided relevant records and testimony to government investigators.

The Wall Street Journal, citing sources, said companies including Conagra , Sara Lee , Perdue Farms and others were being investigated for possible fraud and corruption in supplying the U.S. military in Iraq.

The investigations by the Department of Justice and the Defense Department are examining whether companies charged excessively high prices to Public Warehousing, the paper said.

It said Public Warehousing, which receives more than $1 billion a year to feed troops, denied wrongdoing.

It said Sara Lee acknowledged having received subpoenas from the Department of Defense and said it was "cooperating  fully." A Conagra representative told the paper that the company isn't a target of the investigation, but acknowledged receiving a subpoena.

The paper said a Perdue spokesman said the company hasn't received any subpoenas.

- Wire services contributed to this report.

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