COMPANY·HISTORIES
NAIC 311999

All Other Food Manufacturing

How the companies in this industry began, and the forces that shaped them.

30companies1866–1997founding years30still active0no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironmentHistory
FoundedNestlé S.A.
1866
FoundedIAWS Group plc
1897
FoundedBoyd Coffee Company
1900
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
FoundedKellogg Company
1906
FoundedMars, Incorporated
1911
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedKikkoman Corporation
1917
FoundedArcher-Daniels-Midland Company
1923
FoundedImperial Sugar Company
1924
FoundedGeneral Mills, Inc.
1928
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression spreads worldwide.
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
FoundedEmpresas Polar SA
1941
FoundedTeva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.
1944
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long global expansion begins.
FoundedLeprino Foods Company
1946
FoundedTyson Foods, Inc.
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented.
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
FoundedUnigate PLC
1959
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
FoundedLitehouse Inc.
1963
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; currencies float.
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins.
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher worldwide.
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
FoundedPenford Corporation
1983
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
FoundedLifeway Foods, Inc.
1986
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall sharply around the world.
FoundedMonterey Pasta Company
1989
HistoryThe Berlin Wall falls; global markets open up.
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
1997
EconomyThe Asian financial crisis rattles global markets.
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
2000
EconomyThe dot-com bubble bursts.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit worldwide.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

Nestlé S.A. →
Active · founded 1866 · Switzerland
Nestlé S.A.
IAWS Group plc →
Active · founded 1897 · Ireland
From its late 19th-century origins in Ireland's cooperative movement, IAWS Group plc has grown into a leading food…
Ranks Hovis McDougall Limited →
Active · founded 1899 · United Kingdom
Ranks Hovis McDougall Limited (RHM) is the food division of Tomkins PLC, which acquired the company (then known as…
Boyd Coffee Company →
Active · founded 1900
Boyd Coffee Company is a leading distributor of coffee, brewing equipment, and dry mixes for food service users.
Dr. August Oetker KG →
Active · founded 1902 · Germany
Dr.
Kellogg Company →
Active · founded 1906
Will Keith Kellogg once estimated that 42 cereal companies were launched in the breakfast-food boom during the early…
Mars, Incorporated →
Active · founded 1911
From its origins in candy and confectionary products, Mars, Incorporated has diversified to become a world leader in…
Koninklijke Wessanen nv →
Active · founded 1913 · The Netherlands
Early 20th Century:Company exits from the cheese, seed, and grain trades and begins focusing on processed products.
Kikkoman Corporation →
Active · founded 1917 · Japan
Kikkoman Corporation is the world's largest and most famous producer of soy sauce.
Zatarain's, Inc. →
Active · founded 1922
Zatarain's, Inc., is a leading producer of rice mixes.
Archer-Daniels-Midland Company →
Active · founded 1923
Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (ADM) is one of the world's leading processors and distributors of agricultural products…
Imperial Sugar Company →
Active · founded 1924
Imperial Sugar Company holds the number one position in refined sugar in the United States, with a market share of…
American Pop Corn Company →
Active · founded 1926
American Pop Corn Company is the oldest processor of popcorn in the United States, as well as one of the largest.
General Mills, Inc. →
Active · founded 1928
General Mills, Inc.
Rose Acre Farms, Inc. →
Active · founded 1939
The year 2002 saw the firm introduce an improved milk replacement product for dry animal feed that used the inedible…
Empresas Polar SA →
Active · founded 1941 · Venezuela
Empresas Polar SA operates as Venezuela's largest private industrial conglomerate, manufacturing and distributing a…
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. →
Active · founded 1944 · Israel
With more than one-third of the nation's drug sales, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.
Slim-Fast Foods Company →
Active · founded 1945
Slim-Fast Foods Company sells its popular meal replacement shakes, drink powders, snack bars, and meals throughout the…
Leprino Foods Company →
Active · founded 1946
Leprino Foods Company, owned by the Leprino family, is the largest producer of mozzarella cheese in the United States.
Wakefern Food Corporation →
Active · founded 1946
Wakefern Food Corporation is the wholesale purchasing and distributing cooperative for about 190 ShopRite supermarkets…
Tyson Foods, Inc. →
Active · founded 1947
Founded in 1935, Arkansas-based Tyson Foods, Inc.
Unigate PLC →
Active · founded 1959 · United Kingdom
Unigate PLC is a leading European fresh foods, dairy, and distribution company.
Lancaster Colony Corporation →
Active · founded 1961
Lancaster Colony Corporation's subsidiaries manufacture a wide variety of products, including automotive floor mats,…
Litehouse Inc. →
Active · founded 1963
Litehouse Inc.
Jenny Craig, Inc. →
Active · founded 1983
Through its chain of weight management centers, Jenny Craig, Inc.
Penford Corporation →
Active · founded 1983
Penford Corporation develops, produces, and markets specialty natural-based ingredients for industrial and food…
Lifeway Foods, Inc. →
Active · founded 1986
Lifeway Foods, Inc.
Kraft Foods Inc. →
Active · founded 1989
Kraft Foods Inc.
Monterey Pasta Company →
Active · founded 1989
The Monterey Pasta Company is a leading producer of prepared gourmet foods.
Clif Bar Inc. →
Active · founded 1997
Based in Berkeley, California, Clif Bar Inc.
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