Kraft Heinz to Slash 2,500 Jobs in the U.S., Canada

Kraft Heinz Co (NASDAQ:KHC) said it will cut 2,500 jobs in the United States and Canada as part of its cost cutting initiatives following the creation of the company through the $46-billion merger of ketchup maker H.J. Heinz with Kraft Foods.

Of the total job cuts, 700 will be in Kraft Heinz's Northfield, Illinois headquarters, spokesman Michael Mullen in an emailed statement to Reuters.

Heinz, backed by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc and Brazilian private equity firm 3G Capital, combined with Kraft earlier this year to create the third-largest North American food company.

The combined company expects to save about $1.5 billion in annual costs by the end of 2017.

(Reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)