Heinz Seeks to Disavow Kerry Connection

AP | 3/29/04 | Charles Sheehan

[The South Texan]

Heinz Seeks to Disavow Kerry Connection

By CHARLES SHEEHAN, AP Business Writer

PITTSBURGH - H.J. Heinz Co. has launched an election-year campaign of its own, this one to distance the ketchup maker from what is shaping up to be an acrimonious presidential race.

The company has sent nearly 50 letters to radio and television talk shows nationwide to tamp down chatter on the airwaves and Internet suggesting revenue from ketchup sales will benefit the campaign of pending Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry (news - web sites).

His wife is Teresa Heinz Kerry, heiress to the $500 million family ketchup fortune.

The company has received about 150 calls this month from consumers vowing to boycott Heinz products, or in some instances to buy more, said company spokeswoman Debbie Foster.

"It's just crazy," Foster said. "We haven't been involved in politics since Morris the Cat ran for president in 1988" — when the company ran a spoof campaign with Morris, the face of Heinz 9 Lives cat food, as the finicky candidate.

Heinz Kerry, who was married to Republican Senator H. John Heinz III when he was killed in a 1991 plane crash, is not on Heinz's board and is in no way involved with company management, Foster said.

Collectively, Heinz Kerry, along with her children with John Heinz and The Heinz Endowments which she chairs, own less than 4 percent of outstanding company stock.

The company has not seen any effect on sales. But it took action after The Heinz Endowments was accused of funding Peaceful Tomorrows, a group for Sept. 11 victims' families that criticized President Bush (news - web sites)'s use of footage from the attacks in political ads.

The Heinz Endowments President Maxwell King and David Potorti, co-director at Peaceful Tomorrows, have repeatedly denied any link.

While many talk shows have since backed away from those claims, Internet chat rooms are still buzzing with calls for a Heinz boycott.

[rwfromkansas]

Alert.....apparently Del Monte is also owned by Heinz. People should not buy Del Monte ketchup thinking it is independent. Add that to the graphic...

[rwfromkansas]

Well, I might boycott afterall....4 percent of the profits of this massive company is huge.

[rwfromkansas]

Nevermind....another poster corrected the original poster saying Del Monte was owned by Heinz. I checked the website and Del Monte bought some Heinz companies.

Del Monte is safe...

[P-Marlowe]

Alert.....apparently Del Monte is also owned by Heinz.

I suggest you run a fact check on that rw. I don't think it is true. Apparently Del Monte purchased several brands from Heinz company. Before we start accusing Del Monte of funding the Kerry campaign, I think we'd better make certain our information is correct.

[P-Marlowe]

Del Monte is safe...

Thanks RW. Del Monte makes the only pickle relish I can eat. Heinz pickle relish sucks beyond belief.

[Mo1]

HAHAHAHAHA .... Guess Kerry lost another endorsement

[rwfromkansas]

See the Kerry financial statement on how much money he personally gets from stock in the Heinz company.

http://www.opensecrets.org/pfds/pfd2002/N00000245_2002.pdf

(pages 27 and 68)

[rwfromkansas]

True. Somebody posted it, I briefly looked at the website (without reading the press release), then posted it again.

Then I read the comment from somebody questioning it and I took a closer look......sure enough, Del Monte actually bought part Heinz, not the other way around.

[onyx]

Hahahahahahaha is right.
I detest him.

[NotchJohnson]

So Teresa Heinz was married to a rep. senator, then changed to John Kerry?

[familyofman]

"The less products Heintz sells, the less money Terayyysa gets to fund liberal causes."

Not true at all. The Endowment, by definition, has it's own assets and receives no current funding/support from the current operations of the H.J.Heinz Co. If you can prove otherwise - do so, or drop it. Your ignorance of corporations and family endowment funds is beyond beleif.

[familyofman]

"Dreamer.

Let's talk about 50 million in real estate."

Old family money. What do you propose - no one from a wealthy family can run - how innane can you get.

[Ima Lurker]

LOL.....good one!

[stainlessbanner]

You are right on.

[areafiftyone]

Fat Chance - We must keep pushing the Ketchup!!!

[xp38]

It would be most helpful if you could investigate Hunts and its major shareholders and where their political connections lie and report back to us. I don't want to switch from Heinz to Hunts only to find their ketchup is actually redder in the wrong way. Btw the CEO and President of Heinz I read here on FR donates to the Republicans.

[Born Conservative]

We have a local Heinz plant, and I'm almost positive I've seen a Del Monte sign out in front of the plant. I'll check today on my way home from work.

[Joee]

Thanks ---- I ment to say Hunts.

[Joee]

I ment to say Hunts instead of Del Monte. Regardless, if I know a product is Heinz, I won't buy it. To hell with the Traitor Kerry!!!

[Mammy7]

I post on the AOL political message boards and although there is a lot of "chatter" about Kerry and the Heinz connection it centers mostly on whether he is being hypocritical in his position on "anti- outsourcing" while he is denouncing the practice or at least advocating putting new "stringent" tax regulations on those companies that do.