<PAGE>   1

    AS FILED WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION ON AUGUST 24, 1998

================================================================================

                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                             Washington, D.C. 20549

                              --------------------

                                    FORM S-8
                             REGISTRATION STATEMENT
                                     UNDER
                           THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

                              --------------------

                         INTERNATIONAL HOME FOODS, INC.
             (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
                                                                              
           DELAWARE                                             13-3377322    
(State or other jurisdiction of                              (I.R.S. Employer 
incorporation or organization)                               Identification No.)

                              1633 LITTLETON ROAD
                         PARSIPPANY, NEW JERSEY  07054
          (Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)

                              --------------------

                            INTERNATIONAL HOME FOODS
                              401(k) SAVINGS PLAN
                            (Full title of the plan)

                              C. DEAN METROPOULOS
                            CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
                         INTERNATIONAL HOME FOODS, INC.
                              1633 LITTLETON ROAD
                         PARSIPPANY, NEW JERSEY  07054
                                 (973) 359-9920
           (Name, address and telephone number of agent for service)

                                    copy to:
                                A. WINSTON OXLEY
                             VINSON & ELKINS L.L.P.
                           3700 TRAMMELL CROW CENTER
                                2001 ROSS AVENUE
                              DALLAS, TEXAS  75201
                                 (214) 220-7891

                        CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE
===============================================================================

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                          Proposed            Proposed
      Title of securities           Amount to be     maximum offering     maximum aggregate       Amount of
        to be registered             registered      price per unit(1)    offering price(1)    registration fee
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 <S>                                <C>              <C>                  <C>                <C>
 Common Stock, $0.01 par
 value per share . . . . . . .      300,000(2)       $  17.8125           $  5,343,750       $  1,577   
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Interest in the International Home 
 Foods 401(k) Savings Plan . .          (3)                  (4)                 (4)                (4)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
</TABLE>

(1)      Estimated solely for purposes of calculating the registration fee in
         accordance with Rule 457(h) under the Securities Act of 1933 and based
         on the average of the high and low prices reported on the New York
         Stock Exchange on August 21, 1998.
(2)      If, as a result of stock splits, stock dividends or similar
         transactions, the number of securities purported to be registered on
         this Registration Statement changes, the provisions of Rule 416 shall
         apply to this Registration Statement, and this Registration Statement
         shall be deemed to cover the additional securities resulting from the
         split of, or dividend on, the securities covered by this Registration
         Statement.
(3)      Pursuant to Rule 416(c) under the Securities Act of 1933, this
         Registration Statement also covers an indeterminate amount of plan
         interests to be offered or sold pursuant to the International Home
         Foods 401(k) Savings Plan.
(4)      Pursuant to Rule 457(h)(2) under the Securities Act of 1933, no
         separate fee is required to registered plan interests.


================================================================================


<PAGE>   2
                                    PART II
               INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT


ITEM 3.  INCORPORATION OF DOCUMENTS BY REFERENCE.

         The following documents have been filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (the "Commission") by International Home Foods, Inc., a
Delaware corporation (the "Company"), and are incorporated herein by reference
and made a part hereof:

         (a)     The Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year
                 ended December 31, 1997, filed with the Commission pursuant to
                 the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act") on
                 March 31, 1998;

         (b)     The Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K/A for the fiscal year
                 ended December 31, 1997, filed with the Commission pursuant to
                 the Exchange Act on July 27, 1998;

         (c)     The Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly
                 period ended March 31, 1998, filed with the Commission
                 pursuant to the Exchange Act on May 15, 1998;

         (d)     The Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q/A for the
                 quarterly period ended March 31, 1998, filed with the
                 Commission pursuant to the Exchange Act on July 27, 1998;

         (e)     The Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly 
                 period ended June 30, 1998, filed with the Commission pursuant
                 to the Exchange Act on August 14, 1998.

         (f)     The Company's Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the 
                 Commission pursuant to the Exchange Act on March 16, 1998,

         (g)     The Company's Current Report on Form 8-K for the period ended
                 April 13, 1998, filed with the Commission pursuant to the
                 Exchange Act on April 20, 1998; and

         (h)     The description of the Company's Common Stock, $0.01 par value
                 per share, contained in Item 1 of the Company's Registration
                 Statement on Form 8-A filed with the Commission pursuant to
                 the Exchange Act on October 27, 1997.

         All documents subsequently filed by the Company and the International
Home Foods 401(k) Savings Plan (the "Plan") pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c),
14 and 15(d) of the Exchange Act prior to the filing of a post-effective
amendment that indicates that all securities offered have been sold, or that
deregisters all securities then remaining unsold, shall also be deemed to be
incorporated by reference herein and to be a part hereof from the dates of
filing of such documents.  Any statement contained in a document incorporated
or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed to be modified
or superseded for purposes of this Registration Statement to the extent that a
statement contained herein or in any other subsequently filed document which
also is or is deemed to be incorporated by reference herein modifies or
supersedes such statement.  Any statement so modified or superseded shall not
be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this
Registration Statement.  Upon the written or oral request of any person to whom
a copy of this Registration Statement has been delivered, the Company and the
Plan will provide without charge to such person a copy of any and all documents
(excluding exhibits thereto unless such exhibits are specifically incorporated
by reference into such documents) that have been incorporated by reference into
this Registration Statement but not delivered herewith.  Requests for such
documents should be addressed to International Home Foods, Inc., 1633 Littleton
Road, Parsippany, New Jersey  07054, Attention:  Secretary (973) 359-9920.

ITEM 4.  DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES.

         Not applicable.





                                      2
<PAGE>   3
ITEM 5.  INTERESTS OF NAMED EXPERTS AND COUNSEL.

         Not applicable.

ITEM 6.  INDEMNIFICATION OF DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS.

         Article Ten of the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation
of the Company provides that the Company shall indemnify its officers and
directors to the maximum extent allowed by the Delaware General Corporation
Law.  Pursuant to Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, the
Company generally has the power to indemnify its current and former directors
against expenses and liabilities incurred by them in connection with any suit
to which they are, or are threatened to be made, a party by reason of their
serving in those positions so long as they acted in good faith and in a manner
they reasonably believed to be in, or not opposed to, the best interest of the
Company, and with respect to any criminal action, so long as they had no
reasonable cause to believe their conduct was unlawful.  With respect to suits
by or in the right of the Company, however, indemnification is generally
limited to attorneys' fees and other expenses and is not available if the
person is adjudged to be liable to the Company, unless the court determines
that indemnification is appropriate.  The statute expressly provides that the
power to indemnify authorized thereby is not exclusive of any rights granted
under any bylaw, agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors, or
otherwise.  The Company also has the power to purchase and maintain insurance
for its directors and officers and has purchased a policy providing such
insurance.

         The preceding discussion of the Company's Amended and Restated
Certificate of Incorporation and Section 145 of the Delaware General
Corporation Law is not intended to be exhaustive and is qualified in its
entirety by the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Section
145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law.

         The Company has entered into indemnification agreements with the
Company's directors and officers.  Pursuant to such agreements, the Company
will, to the extent permitted by applicable law, indemnify such persons against
all expenses, judgments, fines and penalties incurred in connection with the
defense or settlement of any actions brought against them by reason of the fact
that they were directors  or officers of the Company or assumed certain
responsibilities at the direction of the Company.

ITEM 7.  EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION CLAIMED.

         Not applicable.

ITEM 8.  EXHIBITS.

         Unless otherwise indicated below as being incorporated by reference to
another filing of the Company with the Commission, each of the following
exhibits is filed herewith:

         4.1     --       International Home Foods 401(k) Savings Plan, as
                          amended

         5.1     --       (a)     Opinion of Vinson & Elkins L.L.P.
                          (b)     The Company will submit the International
                                  Home Foods 401(k) Savings Plan  and any
                                  amendment thereto to the Internal Revenue
                                  Service ("IRS") in a timely manner and will
                                  make all changes required by the IRS in order
                                  to qualify the plan.

         23.1    --       Consent of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

         23.2    --       Consent of Arthur Andersen LLP

         23.3    --       Consent of Vinson & Elkins L.L.P. (included as part
                          of Exhibit 5.1)

         24.1    --       Powers of Attorney (included on the signature pages
                          of this Registration Statement)





                                      3
<PAGE>   4
ITEM 9.  UNDERTAKINGS.

         The Company hereby undertakes:

                 (1)      to file, during any period in which offers or sales
     are being made, a post-effective amendment to this Registration Statement:

                 (i)      to include any prospectus required by section
         10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities
         Act");

                 (ii)     to reflect in the prospectus any facts or events
         arising after the effective date of the Registration Statement (or the
         most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or
         in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information
         set forth in the Registration Statement; and

                 (iii)    to include any material information with respect to
         the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the Registration
         Statement or any material change to such information in the
         Registration Statement;

     provided, however, that paragraphs (1)(i) and (1)(ii) do not apply if the
     information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those
     paragraphs is contained in periodic reports filed by the Company pursuant
     to section 13 or section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated
     by reference in this Registration Statement.

                 (2)      That, for the purposes of determining any liability
     under the Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be
     deemed to be a new Registration Statement relating to the securities
     offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be
     deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

                 (3)      To remove from registration by means of a
     post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which
     remain unsold at the termination of the offering.

                 (4)      That, for purposes of determining any liability under
     the Securities Act, each filing of the Company's annual report pursuant to
     section 13(a) or section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that is incorporated by
     reference in the Registration Statement shall be deemed to be a new
     Registration Statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the
     offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial
     bona fide offering thereof.

                 (5)      Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising
     under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and
     controlling persons of the Company pursuant to the foregoing provisions,
     or otherwise, the Company has been advised that in the opinion of the
     Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in
     the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable.  In the event that a
     claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment
     by the Company of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or
     controlling person of the Company in the successful defense of any action,
     suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling
     person in connection with the securities being registered, the Company
     will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by
     controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the
     question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as
     expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final
     adjudication of such issue.





                                      4
<PAGE>   5
                                   SIGNATURES

     Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended,
the Company certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets
all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this
Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto
duly authorized, in the City of Parsippany, State of New Jersey, on the 12th
day of June, 1998.

                                  INTERNATIONAL HOME FOODS, INC
                                  
                                  By: /s/ C. Dean Metropoulos
                                     ------------------------------------------
                                          C. Dean Metropoulos,
                                          Chairman of the Board and Chief 
                                          Executive Officer

                               POWER OF ATTORNEY

     KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature
appears below constitutes and appoints C. Dean Metropoulos, Alan B. Menkes and
N. Michael Dion and each of them, as his true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and
agents, each with full power of substitution and resubstitution, for him and in
his name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any and all
amendments, including pre- and post-effective amendments, to this Registration
Statement, and any registration statement relating to the offering covered by
this Registration Statement and filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the
Securities Act, and to file the same, with exhibits thereto and other documents
in connection therewith, with the Commission, granting unto said
attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and authority to do
and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done, as
fully to all intents and purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby
ratifying and confirming all that each of said attorneys-in-fact and agents or
their substitute may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

     Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, this Registration
Statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the
date indicated.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                    Signature                                      Capacity                           Date
                    ---------                                      --------                           ----

               <S>                                    <C>                                     <C>

               /s/ C. Dean Metropoulos                    Chairman of the Board and           August 20, 1998
             ------------------------------                Chief Executive Officer
                   C. Dean Metropoulos                   (Principal Executive Officer)


              /s/ N. Michael Dion                           Chief Financial Officer           August 20, 1998
             ------------------------------           (Principal Financial and Accounting
                  N. Michael Dion                                  Officer)

              /s/ Thomas O. Hicks                                  Director                   August 20, 1998
             ------------------------------ 
                  Thomas O. Hicks 

              /s/ L. Hollis Jones                                  Director                   August 20, 1998
             ------------------------------ 
                  L. Hollis Jones

              /s/ Michael J. Levitt                                Director                   August 20, 1998
             ------------------------------ 
                  Michael J. Levitt 

              /s/ M. L. Lowenkron                                  Director                   August 20, 1998
             ------------------------------ 
                  M. L. Lowenkron
</TABLE>                         





<PAGE>   6
<TABLE>
                <S>                                                <C>                        <C>
 
 
              /s/ Alan B. Menkes                                   Director                   August 20, 1998
             ------------------------------ 
                  Alan B. Menkes 

              /s/ John R. Muse                                     Director                   August 20, 1998
             ------------------------------ 
                  John R. Muse

              /s/ Roger T. Staubach                                Director                   August 20, 1998
             ------------------------------ 
                  Roger T. Staubach

              /s/ Charles W. Tate                                  Director                   August 20, 1998
             ------------------------------ 
                  Charles W. Tate  
</TABLE>                           



         Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, the person
administering the International Home Foods 401(k) Savings Plan has duly caused
this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned,
thereunto duly authorized in the City of Parsippany, State of New Jersey, on
the 12th day of June, 1998.

INTERNATIONAL HOME FOODS
401(k) SAVINGS PLAN

By:      International Home Foods, Inc.,
         Plan Sponsor and Plan Administrator


By:      /s/ Michael J. Cramer
   ------------------------------------------
         Michael J. Cramer
         Vice President





<PAGE>   7
                                 EXHIBIT INDEX

 
<TABLE>
EXHIBIT
NUMBER                                DESCRIPTION
-------                               -----------

<S>      <C>     <C>
4.1      --      International Home Foods 401(k) Savings Plan, as amended

5.1      --      (a)      Opinion of Vinson & Elkins L.L.P.
                 (b)      The Company will submit the International Home Foods 401(k) Savings Plan  and
                          any amendment thereto to the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") in a timely
                          manner and will make all changes required by the IRS in order to qualify the
                          plan.

23.1     --      Consent of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

23.2     --      Consent of Arthur Andersen LLP

23.3     --      Consent of Vinson & Elkins L.L.P. (included as part of Exhibit 5.1)

24.1     --      Powers of Attorney (included on the signature pages of this
                 Registration Statement)
</TABLE>