Chiquita facts for kids
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| Private | |
| Industry | Agriculture |
| Predecessor | United Brands |
| Founded | August 1984 (as Chiquita Brands International) |
| Headquarters | Étoy, Switzerland & Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States |
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Key people
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Carlos López Flores (president) |
| Products | Produce (primarily bananas) |
| Owner | Cutrale (50%) Safra (50%) |
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Number of employees
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~20,000 |
Chiquita Brands International S.à.r.l. (/tʃɪˈkiːtə/), formerly known as United Fruit Co., is a Swiss-domiciled American producer and distributor of bananas and other produce. The company operates under a number of subsidiary brand names, including the flagship Chiquita brand and Fresh Express salads. Chiquita is the leading distributor of bananas in the United States.
Chiquita is the successor to the United Fruit Company. It was formerly controlled by American businessman Carl Lindner Jr., whose majority ownership of the company ended when Chiquita Brands International exited a prepackaged Chapter 11 bankruptcy on 19 March 2002. In 2003, the company acquired the German produce distribution company, Atlanta AG. Fresh Express salads was purchased from Performance Food Group in 2005. Chiquita's former headquarters were located in Charlotte, North Carolina.
On 10 March 2014, Chiquita Brands International Inc. and Fyffes plc announced that the Boards of Directors of both companies unanimously approved a definitive agreement under which Chiquita would combine with Fyffes, in a stock-for-stock transaction that was expected to result in Chiquita shareholders owning approximately 50.7% of ChiquitaFyffes and Fyffes shareholders owning approximately 49.3% of the proposed ChiquitaFyffes, on a fully diluted basis. The agreement would have created the largest banana producer in the world and would have been domiciled in Ireland. An intervening offer by Brazilian companies Cutrale and Safra Group of $611 million in August 2014 was rejected by Chiquita, with the company saying it would continue with its merger with Fyffes. On 24 October, Chiquita announced that the shareholders at a Company Special Meeting had rejected the merger with Fyffes. Instead the Cutrale-Safra acquisition offer was then accepted by the shareholders.
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History
Chiquita Brands International's history began in 1870, when ship's captain Lorenzo Dow Baker purchased 160 bunches of bananas in Jamaica and resold them in Jersey City eleven days later. In 1873, Central American railroad developer Minor C. Keith began to experiment with banana production in Costa Rica. Later, he planted bananas alongside a Costa Rican railroad track to provide revenue for the railroad. In 1878, Baker partnered with Andrew Preston to form the Boston Fruit Company.
United Fruit Company was founded in 1899, when the Boston Fruit Company and various fruit exporting concerns controlled by Keith merged. In 1903, United Fruit Company was listed on the New York Stock Exchange and became the first company to use refrigeration during open sea transport. In the same year, a US-funded railroad was built in Guatemala to benefit the company. During this period, United Fruit Company was known for its aggressive and exploitative practices in its operations in Central America.
In 1928, workers went on strike in protest against poor pay and working conditions in the company plantations Ciénaga (Colombia). The company lobbied U.S. government forces to assist with repressing the outbreak; however, the Colombian government opted to quell the strike on its own, sending military forces into the town of Ciénaga, where the strikers had gathered, on 6 December. The repression resulted in the deaths of scores of plantation workers and their families. This episode is known in the history of Colombia as the Masacre de las Bananeras (Banana massacre).
United Fruit used emotionally charged advertising campaigns to gain support, like "The Great White Fleet," a cruise liner that took American tourists to nations in Central and South America that United Fruit had invested in. Positive corporate image was fostered by commercials, which presented these destinations as exotic, fun excursions. Nevertheless, well planned tourist trips concealed the brutal and corrupt reality that existed on United Fruit's plantations in Latin America. By 1930, the company's fleet had grown to 95 ships.
In 1944, the company premiered the "Chiquita Banana" advertising jingle, which extolled the virtues of the fruit as well as when to eat them and how to store them. The song, which had an infectious calypso beat, began with the words "I'm Chiquita Banana, and I've come to say." The brand name Chiquita was registered as a trademark in 1947.
In 1952, the government of Guatemala began expropriating unused United Fruit Company land to landless peasants. The company responded by intensively lobbying the U.S. government to intervene and mounting a misinformation campaign to portray the Guatemalan government as communist. In 1954, the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency deposed the government of Guatemala, elected in 1950, and installed a pro-business military dictatorship.
By 1955, United Fruit Company was processing 2.7 billion pounds (1.2 billion kilograms) of fruit a year. In 1966, the company expanded into Europe. Eli Black came in 1968 and was made chairman, president, and CEO. In 1970, the company merged with AMK Corporation and changed its name to United Brands Company. Black took a controlling interest by outbidding two other conglomerates, Zapata Corporation and Textron. After the death of Black in 1975, the company was acquired by Seymour Milstein and Paul Milstein. In 1980, Chiquita was an official sponsor of the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York.
In 1984, Cincinnati investor Carl Lindner Jr. became the controlling investor in United Brands.
In 1990, the company renamed itself Chiquita Brands International, as it undertook major investments in Costa Rica. However, the company began to see a decline in Honduran operations during the first half of 1990. As a result, Chiquita initiated the "Banana Wars" with rival company Fyffes over the limited banana supply. Chiquita began illegally seizing and destroying Fyffes' shipments, as well as bribing judges to validate detention orders on Fyffes' ships. This culminated in the destruction of ten million dollars worth of produce.
In 1993, the company was hit by European tariffs on the import of Latin American bananas. In 1994, some Chiquita farms were certified by the Rainforest Alliance's Better Banana Project as being environmentally friendly. In 1995, the company sold the John Morrell meat business that was part of the original AMK Corporation. In 1998, the world's largest banana processing facility debuted in Costa Rica. In 2001, the EU dismantled their banana import policy that favored European companies. This ended any ongoing banana disputes.
Restructuring
In November 2001, Chiquita filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in order to restructure the company. It emerged from the bankruptcy on 19 March 2002, ending Cincinnati businessman Carl H. Lindner Jr.'s control of the company. Also in 2002, Chiquita joined the Ethical Trading Initiative and was named as a top "green stock" by The Progressive Investor.
In 2003, Chiquita acquired the German produce distribution company, Atlanta AG. It also sold its processed foods division to Seneca Foods that year. In 2004, 100% of Chiquita farms were certified compliant with the SA8000 labor standard and the company earned the "Corporate Citizen of the Americas Award" from a Honduran charity. Fresh Express salads was purchased from Performance Food Group in 2005.
Acquisition
In March 2014, Chiquita Brands International and Fyffes announced that their boards of directors had unanimously approved a merger agreement. In the stock-for-stock transaction, former Chiquita shareholders will own approximately 50.7% of the new company, ChiquitaFyffes, while Fyffes shareholders will own 49.3% of the new company. The all-stock purchase was valued at US$526 million. The agreement would have created the largest banana company in the world with projected annual revenues of US$4.6 billion and have been domiciled in Ireland but be listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Chiquita's CEO Ed Lonergan would have served as Chairman and Fyffes Executive Chairman David McCann would have become the CEO of the proposed entity. Lonergan called this a "milestone transaction" and that "the combined company will also be able to provide customers with a more diverse product mix and choice;" while McCann added that both companies will benefit from their "joint expertise, complementary assets and geographic coverage to develop a business". According to Chiquita, the deal will "provide substantial operational efficiencies and cost savings". Reuters reported that the merger will create tax advantages deriving from being based in Ireland, similar to those enjoyed by Perrigo following its takeover of the Irish company Élan. The deal is a corporate inversion, as the takeover company (Chiquita, United States), is relocating its domicile to that of purchased company (Fyffes, Ireland).
A $611 million takeover offer by Cutrale of Brazil and Safra group in August 2014, was rejected outright by Chiquita, with the company refusing to meet with the bidders to discuss the offer. Chiquita said it was pressing on with its merger with Fyffes. However, shortly after Chiquita shareholders rejected the Fyffes merger the Cutrale-Safra offer of $14.50 per share was accepted. Yet the North Carolina Economic Development board asserted that if the headquarters was moved away, the company would be due to return N.C. and local incentive money. Former Charlotte City Council member John Lassiter, who heads the board, said the new owners would inherit Chiquita's responsibilities under a 2011 deal that brought the company to the city. The agreement stipulates that it received more than $23 million in incentives from Charlotte and Mecklenburg County for moving its headquarters and hundreds of high-paying jobs from Cincinnati and if it moved again within 10 years it must repay the "clawback" provision. Lassiter said of the matter: "It’s not a question of opinion. It’s 'What does the agreement say?’ I would expect both the city (of Charlotte) to impress its position (on the new owners) and for the (new ownership) to follow expectations under its provisions of the agreement."
Operations
Chiquita Brands International operates in 70 countries and employs approximately 20,000 people as of 2018. The company sells a variety of fresh produce, including bananas, ready-made salads, and health foods. The company's Fresh Express brand has approximately $1 billion of annual sales and a 40% market share in the United States.
On 29 November 2011, the North Carolina Economic Investment Committee approved $22 million in incentives for Chiquita to move its headquarters to Charlotte, North Carolina. The same day, Chiquita officially announced their move to the city, with the new headquarters residing in the NASCAR Plaza tower. Research and development was also moved to the Charlotte area. In addition to the incentives, the company cited the growing airport as a reason for the move. According to the company's 2012 annual report, the company was aiming to "transform [itself] into a high-volume, low-cost operator" and to "minimize investments outside of [its] core product offerings".
By 2019, the company's main offices left the United States and relocated to Switzerland.
Logo
The company mascot "Miss Chiquita", now Chiquita Banana, was created in 1944 by Dik Browne, who is best known for drawing the popular comic strips Hi and Lois and Hägar the Horrible. Miss Chiquita started as an animated banana with a woman's dress and legs. Vocalist Patti Clayton was the original 1944 voice of Miss Chiquita, followed by Elsa Miranda, June Valli and Monica Lewis. Advertisements featured the trademark banana character wearing a fruit hat. The banana with a fruit hat was changed into a woman in 1987. A new Miss Chiquita design was unveiled in 1998. Peel-off stickers with the logo started being placed on bananas in 1963. They are still placed by hand today to avoid bruising the fruit.
A commercial in 1947, with a theme song in English ended with the lyrics "si, si" emphasizing for consumers the origin of the bananas as Latin America. Another commercial featured a man of Latin descent with exaggerated stereotypical features. As times changed throughout the 1960s, so did the iconography and publications of Chiquita and their produce, of bananas.
See also
In Spanish: Chiquita Brands International para niños
- Grand Nain
- Paramilitarism in Colombia
- Union of Banana Exporting Countries
- United Fruit Company
- 1954 Guatemalan coup d'état
