Leaf Blower

about

(Est. 1971, previously Conagra Foods) “Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE: CAG), headquartered in Chicago, is one of North America’s leading branded food companies. Guided by an entrepreneurial spirit, Conagra Brands combines a rich heritage of making great food with a sharpened focus on innovation. The company’s portfolio is evolving to satisfy people’s changing food preferences. Conagra’s iconic brands, such as Marie Callender’s®, Reddi-wip®, Hunt’s®, Healthy Choice®, Slim Jim® and Orville Redenbacher’s®, as well as emerging brands, including Alexia®, Blake’s® and Frontera®, offer choices for every occasion. With an ongoing commitment to corporate citizenship, Conagra Brands has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability™ North America Index for six consecutive years.”

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related links

Conagra Brands press release on spin-off
Food Business News story (pretty good and thorough)
2009 Brand New post

opinion/notes

The icon in the old logo had its charm and efficiently conveyed the idea of food. Unfortunately the type around it was bad and distracting. Along with the new name — and even a change in corporate headquarters from Omaha to Chicago — the new logo is all about signaling change. Unclear what kind of change but change for sure. Based on the logo you would think the brands that Conagra sells would have to do with produce — fresh fruits and vegetables, perhaps some brand of spring mineral water — since it looks heavily "natural" with its rough textures and a leaf as its centerpiece. Unless Slim Jim has since evolved to sprout from the ground to be harvested in Spring, nothing could be further from reality. The only claim in favor of the logo, and I guess it's a legit one, is that Conagra Brands has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability™ North America Index that looks at the long-term economic, environmental and social impact of companies. So there is that. Still, there is something not genuine about such a nature-y-loooking logo for a company that makes whipped cream in a can, which is kind of a shame because graphically it's pretty good, with a nice balance, cool colors, and interesting tension between the three elements. The wordmark is quite boring and black is a weirdly stark choice, given the softness of the rest of the colors. Then someone remembered they had to include "BRANDS" in there and that's why it looks like an add-on. Overall, yeah, the change is evident but, at least from an outsider's perspective, it feels misleading.

Thanks to Drew Davies for the tip.