Supplier Alert:  Fraudulent Purchase Orders

This message is for existing and potential suppliers to B&G Foods.

Scammers are targeting businesses across the United States claiming to be placing orders on behalf of B&G Foods.  We encourage all suppliers to take precautions so that suppliers do not become victims of these scams.  The scam involves purchase orders or requests for quotations that claim to originate from B&G Foods but are fraudulent.  The scammers may be located overseas.  While B&G Foods cannot prevent this fraudulent activity, we have been supplying the authorities with details to investigate the matter as we become aware of specific instances.

The scam typically operates in the following way

The supplier will receive an email with a purchase order that bears resemblance to an authentic B&G Foods purchase order. The purchase order may instruct delivery to an address not affiliated with B&G Foods.  Please be aware that some scammers may use legitimate B&G Foods addresses when placing the order, and then change the ship-to address after placing the order.  After pickup or delivery of the items, the supplier never receives payment and is unable to retrieve the shipped products.

Indicators of fraud
  • Incorrect domain name used to send emails and purchase orders. A valid email address will always end in @bgfoods.com. Examples of incorrect email addresses and domains are set forth below under the heading “Fraudulent email addresses and domains.”
  • The ship-to or delivery address is not a B&G Foods address.
  • Use of a false or unknown contact from B&G Foods or a contact who would not ordinarily purchase for B&G Foods the type of goods being purchased (e.g., an HR employee purchasing beans, other ingredients or packaging materials).
  • Phone numbers not associated with B&G Foods.
  • Unusually large quantities are requested.
  • Rush to ship priority/overnight or rushed pickup.
  • Last minute changes to ship-to locations.
 
Fraudulent email addresses and domains

The scammers often use email addresses meant to look like a B&G Foods email address.  Be sure to check the email’s headers to determine if the email actually came from B&G Foods.  Hovering over the email address may reveal the originator’s email address if different from that displayed.

B&G Foods does not use any email address format other than @bgfoods.com.  B&G Foods does not use @gmail or @proton.me to conduct business.  B&G Foods also does not use email addresses ending in .net or .org.

The following are examples of fraudulent domains and email addresses, but others have been used:  @bgfoodinc.com; @bandgfoods.com; @bgfoods-inc.com; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; and [email protected].

 
Additional information regarding fraudulent purchase orders, credit applications and ship to addresses

Even if the purchase order appears to have come from a B&G Foods email, we recommend that you remain vigilant and email us at [email protected] to verify the order.  If the order is unusually large, you have not previously done business with B&G Foods or if you otherwise have concerns about the legitimacy of the purchase order, please email [email protected] and we can help determine whether the purchase order is legitimate.

B&G Foods does not include a DUNS Number or EIN (tax payer ID number) on its purchase orders.  Legitimate purchases orders from B&G Foods also do not typically include signatures from a B&G Foods employee (electronic or otherwise).

The scammer might also complete a credit application using the names of officers or employees who work for B&G Foods.  Fraudulent credit applications typically list our correct EIN and DUNS numbers.  This information, however, is publicly available and therefore readily available to fraudsters.  If you have any doubts regarding the authenticity of a credit application, please contact us at [email protected].

Although scammers often use the names of fake employees, be aware that scammers also impersonate legitimate B&G Foods employees, such as Casey Keller, Bruce Wacha, Scott Lerner, Eric Hart and Tommy Grotti, but typically do so using fake and fraudulent email addresses and phone numbers.

B&G Foods does not issue purchase orders for shipment to the Bronx, New York; Caldwell, New Jersey; Jersey City, New Jersey;  or Uganda.

 
What to do if you suspect fraudulent activity

Email [email protected] to verify the validity of the request (please include any emails and documents you have received that relate to the inquiry).

A member of B&G Foods’ compliance department or procurement team will respond to your email as soon as possible to confirm the validity of the request and will provide advice on the action to take if the request is found to be fraudulent, including reporting the incident to the authorities as an attempted fraud against your organization.

You can report internet crimes to the FBI at the following website: https://ic3.gov/.  Variations of this type of scam have been around since 2014, according to the FBI.  https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/purchase-order-scam-leaves-a-trail-of-victims.

Suppliers are fully responsible for verifying the accuracy of all purchase orders.  B&G Foods is not responsible for any losses caused by a supplier fulfilling a fake or fraudulent purchase order.  If you have questions about whether a purchase order or request for quotation is valid, or if you would like to report a fraudulent order, please forward appropriate information to [email protected].

Please note that the scammers might change names, email addresses, addresses, phone numbers, fax numbers, names, etc. at any time and the changes might not be reflected above; we will attempt to update this page when we are aware of new information, but we are not always aware of the scammers’ tactics, and the information set forth above may not be complete or up to date.