Hershey's Is Buying A Gourmet Jerky Company

The Hershey Company is gearing up to acquire Krave, a gourmet jerky company, in a deal worth up to $300 million, people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

According to a news release from John Bilbrey, Hershey's chief executive, the move reflects an awareness of consumers' changing snack habits, which focused last year on more meaty and savory snacks than Hershey's wheelhouse of chocolate and other candy.

Krave's product line includes items like black cherry barbeque pork jerky, basil citrus jerky, lemon garlic jerky, sweet chipotle jerky, and others.

"Krave jerky is a great fit to our portfolio and overall snacks and adjacencies strategy," announced Michele G. Buck, president of The Hershey Company in North America.

"The Krave brand delivers on portable and protein nutrition while also understanding consumers' food preferences, including the desire for simple ingredients and transparency, something that is also a part of Hershey's strategic vision. We are excited to add Krave jerky's unique, chef-inspired products and be a part of this transformational category."