Bruce Rohde, 48, will succeed the 64-year-old Fletcher as CEO on Sept 25, the company said. Fletcher will remain chairman of the board for an undetermined period of time.
Rohde had been perceived as Fletcher's heir apparent since his promotion to vice chairman and president in August. "I am completely confident he is the clear best choice to lead our company into the future," said Fletcher, who indicated long ago that he planned to take a step back from the company.
Until he joined ConAgra last year, Rohde worked at the Omaha law firm McGrath, North, Mullin & Kratz. His connection with ConAgra, however, dates back to 1974 when he began to advise the company on business and strategic issues.
Fletcher started with ConAgra in 1982 when he was named president of the company's Banquet Foods unit. He became CEO in 1992.
In 1996, Fletcher oversaw a major restructuring that eliminated 6,500 jobs and closed or reconfigured 29 plants in the company's bid to become more competitive and improve profit margins.
ConAgra sells food under the brands Healthy Choice, La Choy, Armour and Swiss Miss, supplies feed and fertilizer to farmers and produces commodities like grain and beef.
The company's sales for the fiscal year that ended in May were $24 billion.
Separately, ConAgra said it will split its stock 2-for-1, doubling the number of outstanding shares but reducing their value by half. The new shares will be issued Oct 1 to shareholders of record as of Sept 5.
Meat Industry Insights News Service
P.O. Box 553
Northport, NY 11768
Phone: 631-757-4010
Fax: 631-757-4060
E-mail: sflanagan@sprintmail.com
Web Site: http://www.spcnetwork.com/mii