Campbell Soup Co. is selling its international operations and fresh-food unit but it may not be enough to appease some investors, who want the entire company on the auction block.

Despite pressure from activist investor Dan Loeb to find a buyer amid a three-year sales slump and a sliding stock price, the struggling packaged-food maker will pursue a turnaround plan to ignite growth, according to a statement Thursday. Shares fell in early trading.

The company’s board, which has been reviewing operations since the abrupt departure of Chief Executive Officer Denise Morrison in May, plans to use the proceeds from the sales to pay down debt. The company is also boosting its cost-cutting target as it tries to slim down.

Loeb has criticized the board’s “abysmal oversight” and argued the company should find a strategic buyer. Third Point, the hedge fund he runs, started building up its stake in Campbell after Morrison’s departure. It said in a regulatory filing earlier this month that it had partnered with fellow investor George Strawbridge to push for a sale of the company. They collectively hold about 8.4 per cent of the soup maker. Third Point and Strawbridge weren’t immediately available to comment.

“We believe these actions will put us on a path to create sustainable shareholder value,” interim CEO Keith McLoughlin said in a statement as the company announced results.

Shares had already lost 17 per cent of their value this year through Wednesday.

Campbell has struggled with declining sales in recent years as consumers seeking out less-processed products turn away from its namesake soup. A push to add healthier brands to its portfolio, with the 2011 of acquisition of Bolthouse Farms, had been hampered by operational issues.

--With assistance from Scott Deveau