US food giant Kraft to split company in 2

US giant Kraft Foods said on Thursday it will split its company in two, with one company for its US grocery business and the other for its global snacks portfolio, 18 months after taking over storied British confectionery firm Cadbury. "We have built two strong, but distinct, portfolios," said Kraft chairman Irene Rosenfeld in announcing the split. "Our strategic actions have put us in a position to create two great companies, each with the leadership, resources and strong market positions to realize their full potential." A series of strategic acquisitions including Cadbury "have made Kraft Foods the world's leading snacks company," Kraft said in a statement, A review by the company board and management "has shown that these two businesses would now benefit from being run independently of each other," Kraft said. The snacks business is expected make some $32 billion in yearly revenue, while the grocery spin-off was expected bring in approximately $16 billion. The company's current target is to launch the new firms before the end of 2012.