• by Paul Gough , June 15, 2004

H.J. Heinz Co. will announce this morning that it has assigned its Frozen Foods brand media planning to Starcom USA. Terms of the deal and account size weren't announced.

The Chicago-based media services company already is the media buying agency of record for Heinz U.S. Consumer Products, and had media planning responsibilities for U.S. Ketchup, Condiments, and Sauces. With these new duties, Starcom also adds strategic planning for all of Heinz's frozen food products, including Ore-Ida, Bagel Bites, Smart Ones, and other brands.

Heinz North America has now consolidated its media planning and buying for its entire line of U.S. consumer products. It's an expansion of Starcom's business at Heinz, which began with the Heinz Tomato Ketchup Business in 1998.

"We're excited to expand our Starcom relationship as an integral part of Heinz's efforts to market our brand portfolio through meaningful, engaging consumer contact," said Brian Hansberry, group vice president of frozen foods marketing for Heinz North America, in a prepared statement. "We recognize the vital part media connections play in bonding with consumers, and this consolidation should strengthen our consumer understanding to enhance those bonds."

Starcom USA is a division of Starcom MediaVest Group, which is owned by the French holding company Publicis Groupe SA.