Campbell may sell Godiva business

Campbell Soup Co. said Thursday it may sell its Godiva Chocolatier business to focus more sharply on soups, baked snacks and vegetable-based beverages.

The possible sale of Godiva, which the Camden, N.J.-based Campbell brought to the United States from Belgium in 1966, comes at a time of fast growth in premium chocolate sales. That means bidding could be lively, perhaps topping $1 billion. However, recent credit problems took some fizz out of the private equity market and could hold down the price.

Campbell, whose brands include Pepperidge Farm baked goods and V8 juices, as well as its trademark soup lines, said New York-based Godiva has $500 million in annual sales, or nearly 7 percent of the company’s 2006 revenue of $7.3 billion.

U.S. sales of premium chocolate doubled from 2001 through 2006 to $2.05 billion, according to Mintel International Group Ltd., a Chicago research firm.

That growth prompted a flurry of consolidation, including Hershey Co.’s purchase of three luxury chocolate makers in the last two years. Other deals included Cadbury’s purchase of Green & Black in 2005.

•Verizon Wireless is adding 16 cell sites throughout Washington and Oregon to improve call transmission quality, the company said in a news release.

Washington customers in Spokane, including in parts of the Indian Trail neighborhood, and in Pullman, should notice improved coverage, the company said. Wireless users in Genesee, Idaho, along U.S. Highway 95, should also have improved connections. In Oregon, new cell sites have improved service in cities including Portland and Salem, the release said.

Verizon has invested more than $540 million in its wireless network in Washington state over the past five years to keep up with demand for service, the release said.

•Universal Music Group said Thursday it will sell digital music from artists such as Sting, 50 Cent and Stevie Wonder without the customary copy-protection technology for a limited time.

Tracks from thousands of albums will be available for purchase on the recording artists’ Web sites and through several established online music retailers, although Universal is excluding Apple Inc.’s iTunes store, the No. 1 online music retailer.

The songs, however, will play on Apple’s market-leading iPods, as well as the slew of other devices compatible with the MP3 format.