Food & Beverage

Kraft Heinz completes internal investigation on procurement practices, says returning to normal

Key Points
  • Kraft Heinz said the company's internal investigation into its procurement practices and internal controls assessment is now complete and expects to report its quarterly results on or before July 31.
  • Last month, the company said it would restate financial reports for a near three-year period to fix errors that resulted from lapses in procurement practices by some of its employees.
Characters at the Berkshire Hathaway company Kraft Heinz booth pose with a reporter at the shareholder shopping day as part of the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting weekend in Omaha, Nebraska, May 5, 2017.
Rick Wilking | Reuters

Kraft Heinz said on Friday the it has completed an internal investigation into its procurement practices and controls and expects to report its quarterly results on or before July 31.

The company disclosed earlier this year it had received a subpoena from the Securities and Exchange Commission into its accounting policies and internal controls. The SEC investigation launched an internal review, which caused Kraft Heinz to twice delay filing its annual report.

Kraft Heinz filed its annual report for 2018 on Friday afternoon.

The company said Friday the internal review identified adjustments that resulted in an understatement of the cost of products sold totaling $208 million, including misstatements of $175 million. Kraft Heinz said last month that it will restate financial reports for a near three-year period to fix errors that resulted from lapses in procurement practices by some of its employees.

The internal investigation identified multiple employees who engaged in misconduct in the procurement area. The company also found further misstatements, yet was unable to identify who engaged in misconduct.

The SEC investigation is ongoing, Kraft Heinz said.

Kraft Heinz also disclosed it has elected Joao M. Castro-Neves to its board. Castro-Neves is a former executive at Anheuser Busch Inbev and partner at 3G Capital, the private equity firm that backs Kraft Heinz.

Castro-Neves will replace Marcel Herrmann Telles, who will retire from Kraft Heinz effective June 12.

Herrmann Telles was previously expected to be replaced by the former CEO of Restaurant Brands International, Daniel Schwartz, according to filings.

"It was the Board's preference to nominate Mr. Castro-Neves (in lieu thereof) due to his extensive experience working in the consumer packaged goods industry," the company wrote in the filing Friday.

The company also announced that the board approved an annual base salary of $1 million for incoming CEO Miguel Patrici, in addition to receiving a one-time lump-sum payment of $1 million.

The board approved a severance package for out-going CEO Bernardo Hees consisting of payment equal to his annual base salary of $1 million.

"We are pleased that Kraft Heinz is returning to a path of normalization," Alex Behring, chairman of Kraft Heinz's board, said.

—CNBC's Nadine El-Bawab and Lauren Hirsch contributed to this report.