Company: UTZ
Filing Date: 2025-02-20
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001739566-25-000053
Chunk: 30

Company: Utz Brands, Inc.
Filing Date: 2025-02-20
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 30
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 of premium-branded or lower-priced alternative snack products, or for no reason at all. Loss of consumers’ loyalty to our brands and the resulting decreased sales to consumers could have an adverse effect on our business and operating results.

19

Our reputation or brand image might be impacted as a result of issues or concerns relating to the quality and safety of our products, ingredients or packaging, processing techniques, which in turn could negatively impact our operating results.

In order to sell our branded products, we need to maintain a good reputation with our stakeholders, including our customers, consumers, IOs, third-party distributors, suppliers, vendors, associates and equity holders, among others. Issues related to the quality and safety of our products, including with respect to the packaging, labeling, and processing of our products, could jeopardize our image and reputation. Demand for our products could also be affected by consumer concerns regarding the health effects of nutrients or ingredients in any of our products or the overall sustainability or impact of our products and their packaging on the environment. Negative publicity related to these types of concerns, or related to product contamination or product tampering, whether valid or not and which may not be in our control, could decrease demand for our products or cause production and delivery disruptions. In addition, negative publicity related to our ESG practices, including any ESG-related goals we may set and our progress toward them, any backlash or other implications from the recent “anti-ESG” movement, and any positions, or perceived positions, taken by us on sensitive social or political issues could also impact our reputation with customers, consumers, IOs, third-party distributors, suppliers, vendors, associates and equityholders, among others. Social media has rapidly exacerbated the speed with which negative information or misinformation is disseminated to the consumer population.  Further, the costs associated with these potential actions, as well as the potential impact on our ability to sell our products, could negatively affect our operating results.

If our products become adulterated or are mislabeled, we might need to recall those items, and we may experience product liability claims and related losses, as well as damage to our reputation.

We have in the past and we may, in the future, need to recall some of our products, including any products that we produce for other parties under a private label, in the event that our food safety and quality control procedures are ineffective or fail, our products or packaging become adulterated or are mislabeled, we procure ingredients or packaging from third parties that are or become subject