Dongwon Enterprise Co. will reportedly maintain an office in Pennsylvania for the StarKist tuna brand, according to a report in the Pittsburgh Business Times.
South Korean food conglomerate Dongwon Group announced in June that it is acquiring the brand from Del Monte Foods Co. of San Francisco for $363 million. The acquisition is expected to close in early 2009.
The Pittsburgh office for Continental Real Estate Cos., which owns Del Monte Center in the city's North Shore neighborhood, confirmed that representatives of Del Monte are subleasing some of its office space to StarKist for a new office.
In July, Dongwon named Donald Binotto, who introduced StarKist tuna in pouches while with Heinz, as StarKist's president. StarKist arrived in Pittsburgh in 2000, when Heinz moved the brand's headquarters there from Newport, Ky. Two years later, Heinz sold the unit to Del Monte.
