Income Per Common Share (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended				9 Months Ended
	Jan. 25, 2012		Jan. 26, 2011		Jan. 25, 2012		Jan. 26, 2011
Earnings Per Share Reconciliation
Income attributable to H.J. Heinz Company	$ 284,694		$ 273,785		$ 747,817		$ 765,647
Allocation to participating securities	1,151	[1]	630	[1]	1,939	[1]	1,583	[1]
Preferred dividends	3		3		8		9
Income from continuing operations applicable to common stock	$ 283,540		$ 273,152		$ 745,870		$ 764,055
Average common shares outstanding-basic	320,159,000		321,277,000		320,850,000		319,613,000
Effect of dilutive securities:
Convertible preferred stock	102,000		104,000		96,000		104,000
Stock options, restricted stock and the global stock purchase plan	2,452,000		2,818,000		2,592,000		2,844,000
Average common shares outstanding-diluted	322,713,000		324,199,000		323,538,000		322,561,000
Income Per Common Share (Textuals) [Abstract]
Anti-dilutive stock options	700,000				2,300,000

[1] Represents unvested share-based payment awards that contain certain non-forfeitable rights to dividends or dividend equivalents (whether paid or unpaid).