ConAgra is to acquire the P.F. Chang’s Home Menu and Bertolli frozen meal sections of Unilever North American in a deal worth $265 million. The acquisition of the Unilever businesses will help ConAgra grow their already successful lines of frozen foods, which include brands such as Healthy Choice, Kid Cuisine, Banquet and Marie Callender’s, as well as aid Unilever in their strategy to exit the frozen food segment. ConAgra is excited by the prospect of adding strong brands in the Italian and Asian cuisine markets.

“We’ll use our extensive frozen foods and innovation capabilities to grow these great brands even further,” says Gary Rodkin, CEO of ConAgra Foods. “Just as our acquisition earlier this calendar year of Odom’s Tennessee Pride extended our reach into frozen breakfasts, the addition of Bertolli and P.F. Chang’s brands can bring us new consumers and new eating occasions.”

The deal is still awaiting regulatory review but is slated to include a license for the use of the Bertolli brand name and the transfer of Unilever’s license for use of the P.F. Chang’s Home Menu brand name. The acquisition, which is expected to close in the third quarter of 2012, does not include the Unilever facility in Owensboro, KY, where the products are currently produced. Unilever will also continue to use the Bertolli brand name for its pasta sauce business.

This is the fifth acquisition in the past year for ConAgra Foods, which has also acquired National Pretzel Company, Del Monte Canada, Odom’s Tennessee Pride, and the pita chip business of Kangaroo Brands.