Kraft Heinz is stepping up its turnaround strategy with an additional $100 million investment in innovation and brand-building, as the company looks to revive growth through stronger marketing, new products and deeper consumer engagement.
The investment will take Kraft Heinz’s marketing expenditure to at least 6% of net sales in 2026. The company, which owns brands including Heinz Ketchup, Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Jell-O and Ore-Ida, is increasing spending at a time when the packaged food industry continues to face pressure from changing consumer preferences and cautious spending.
The additional funding builds on Kraft Heinz’s $600 million transformation programme launched earlier this year. The programme focuses on product quality, pricing, research and development, marketing and sales capabilities. According to the company, the initial results have been better than expected, encouraging management to increase investment.
“We’re seeing the investments translate into stronger consumer demand,” CEO Steven Cahillane said while discussing the company’s second-quarter results. He pointed to Heinz condiments as one of the strongest examples of improving performance. The company said Heinz has returned to consumption-led growth in the U.S., giving management greater confidence in its turnaround plans.
Kraft Heinz is also changing the way it spends its advertising budget. Instead of spreading spending across a large number of channels, the company is concentrating on fewer, larger partnerships that can reach wider audiences and deliver better returns.
Its major initiatives include a five-year partnership with the NFL, a long-term alliance with The Walt Disney Company and campaigns connected with the America250 celebrations. These partnerships cover television, digital platforms, theme parks, cruises and live events.
The company has also consolidated media partnerships, strengthened its creative campaigns and increased its focus on measuring advertising through its impact on sales. Campaigns such as “It Has to Be Heinz” and Philadelphia’s “Really Philly Good” are being used to strengthen consumer loyalty and make established brands more relevant to younger shoppers. Kraft Heinz has also expanded hiring across its marketing and sales teams.
The increased investment comes despite continued pressure on sales. For the second quarter ended June 27, Kraft Heinz reported net sales of $6.3 billion, down 1.4% from a year earlier. Sales in North America, its largest market, declined 2.7%. However, the company’s quarterly performance was better than both its own projections and market expectations.
Kraft Heinz has also improved its full-year outlook. It now expects organic net sales to decline between 0.5% and 2% in 2026, compared with its earlier forecast of a decline between 1.5% and 3.5%.
Earlier this year, the company shelved plans to split the business into two separate companies, deciding instead to focus on improving operations and strengthening its existing portfolio.
The latest $100 million commitment shows Kraft Heinz is increasingly looking beyond cost-cutting and placing greater emphasis on brands, innovation and marketing. With early signs of improvement in key categories, the company is betting that stronger consumer engagement and sustained investment in its brands can help return the business to long-term growth.