Kraft Heinz exploring sale of Oscar Mayer business, WSJ reports

(Reuters) -Kraft Heinz is exploring a sale of its Oscar Mayer meats business that could fetch anything between $3 billion to $5 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The Oscar Mayer business, known for hot dogs, bacon, ham, and bologna products, has had to deal with declining consumer demand in the face of a shift to healthier options.

The company also wrote down the value of its Oscar Mayer and Kraft brands in 2019.

Kraft Heinz has tapped Bank of America and Centerview Partners to gauge interest in the business, the report said.

While it is not clear as to who might be interested in purchasing the business, but potential buyers could include private-equity firms or other food-industry players, WSJ added.

The report also notes the possibility that no transaction may materialize.

Kraft Heinz declined to comment on the report.

Before its merger with H.J. Heinz in 2015, Kraft Foods had planned to spin Oscar Mayer into a separate segment in 2007.

Shares of Kraft Heinz were up marginally at $36.45 in afternoon trade following the report.

(Reporting by Granth Vanaik in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)