Annie's Homegrown

Last updated
Annie's, Inc.
Company typeSubsidiary
Industry Organic products
Founded1989;35 years ago (1989)
Hampton, Connecticut, U.S.
Founder
Headquarters Berkeley, California, U.S.
Area served
United States
Canada
Key people
Annie Withey
Products Macaroni and cheese, soup, pasta, salad dressing, crackers, fruit snacks, snack mix, frozen pizza bites, waffles, breakfast cereal, cheese puffs, snack bars, graham crackers, pancakes, ice pops, cookies, barbecue sauce, mustard, ketchup
Owner General Mills
Website www.annies.com OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

Annie's Homegrown (or simply Annie's) is an American organic food company owned by General Mills. The company was founded in Hampton, Connecticut, by Annie Withey and Andrew Martin, who had previously founded Smartfood popcorn along with Ken Meyers. It is best known for its macaroni and cheese product line, which comes in shell form and rabbit shapes, and is the second best selling macaroni and cheese in the United States behind Kraft. [1] Their mascot is a rabbit named Bernie, who appears in the seal of approval called the "Rabbit of Approval" [2] and another slogan called "Bunny of Approval" in 2020. The company also produces Annie's Naturals, which consists of condiments, dressings, and barbecue sauces.

Contents

History

Annie Withey [3] co-founded Annie's Homegrown with Andrew Martin in 1989. Initially, the company only sold "natural" macaroni and cheese in New England supermarkets.

In 1995, Annie's completed a direct public offering that raised $1.3 million. [4]

In 1999, John Foraker, an owner of Homegrown Natural Foods, which made flavored olive oils and mustards, and his company invested $2 million in Annie's. [4] An agreement was reached that would buy out Withey and Martin's shares in the company and make Annie's a private company. [4] Withey became Annie's "inspirational president", and the company began distributing its products to chains like Costco, Kroger, and Safeway. [4]

In 2002, Solera Capital became the majority investor in the company with $23 million. They also added Foraker's company Homegrown Naturals (including brands Consorzio and Fantastic Foods) to the business and moved Annie's headquarters from Boston to Napa, California, in 2004. Later in 2011, Annie's headquarters relocated from Napa to Berkeley, California. [4]

In 2005, the company bought out Annie's Naturals, a (sometimes) organic salad dressing and condiment company founded by Annie Christopher of North Calais, Vermont. [4]

The majority of Annie's stock was owned by Solera Capital, LLC. [1] In December 2011, Annie's filed with the SEC to raise up to $100 million in an initial public offering. [5]

In January 2012, Annie's announced the introduction of a certified organic rising crust frozen pizza line. Annie's certified organic pizza line is exclusive to Whole Foods Market. [6]

On April 3, 2014, Annie's opened their first bakery manufacturing plant, purchased from Safeway Inc. for $7.4 million and located in Joplin, Missouri. [7]

General Mills acquired Annie's on September 8, 2014, for $820 million. [8]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cuisine of the Midwestern United States</span> Regional cuisine of the United States

The cuisine of the American Midwest draws its culinary roots most significantly from the cuisines of Central, Northern and Eastern Europe, and Indigenous cuisine of the Americas, and is influenced by regionally and locally grown foodstuffs and cultural diversity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pizza</span> Italian dish with a flat dough-based base and toppings

Pizza is an Italian dish typically consisting of a flat base of leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomato, cheese, and other ingredients, baked at a high temperature, traditionally in a wood-fired oven.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">General Mills</span> American multinational food corporation

General Mills, Inc., is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of branded ultra-processed consumer foods sold through retail stores. Founded on the banks of the Mississippi River at Saint Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, the company originally gained fame for being a large flour miller. It is headquartered in Golden Valley, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orkla ASA</span> Norwegian consumer good conglomerate

Orkla ASA is a Norwegian conglomerate operating in Europe, Asia and the US. At present, Orkla operates in the branded consumer goods, aluminium solutions and financial investment sectors. Orkla ASA is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange and its head office is in Oslo, Norway. As of 31 December 2021, Orkla had 21,423 employees. The Group's turnover in 2021 totalled NOK 50.4 billion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pavilions (supermarket)</span> American supermarket chain in Southern California owned by Albertsons Companies, Inc

Pavilions is a grocery store banner used by Vons, a supermarket division of Albertsons in Southern California. Although similar to Vons stores, Pavilions markets are more upscale and feature a larger selection of organic food, wine, and other specialty foods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smartfood</span> American popcorn brand

Smartfood, an American brand of pre-popped, flavored popcorn, was founded in 1984 by Annie Withey, Andrew Martin, and Ken Meyers in Marlborough, Massachusetts. Frito-Lay purchased Smartfood in 1989 for $15 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pizza farm</span> Farm split into sections like a pizza split into slices

A pizza farm can be both a farm-based food-service establishment that sells pizza or a demonstration farm that educates visitors about agriculture by growing pizza ingredients, sometimes on a circular piece of land partitioned into plots shaped like pizza slices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Detroit-style pizza</span> Rectangular pan pizza with a thick crust

Detroit-style pizza is a rectangular pan pizza with a thick, crisp, chewy crust. It is traditionally topped to the edges with mozzarella or Wisconsin brick cheese, which caramelizes against the high-sided heavyweight rectangular pan. Detroit-style pizza was originally baked in rectangular steel trays designed for use as automotive drip pans or to hold small industrial parts in factories. It was developed during the mid-20th century in Detroit, Michigan, before spreading to other parts of the United States in the 2010s. It is one of Detroit's most famous local foods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pizza snack rolls</span> Food product

Pizza snack rolls are a frozen food product consisting of bite-sized breaded pizza pockets with an interior of tomato sauce, imitation cheese, and various pizza toppings. They are sold in a variety of flavors including cheese, pepperoni, sausage, supreme, multiple imitation cheeses, and mixed meats. Other flavors included hamburger, cheeseburger, ham and cheese, and combination. Pizza snack rolls are designed to be quickly cooked in the oven or microwave. The name "pizza rolls" is a trademark of General Mills, current owner of the original product.

Annie's or Annies may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ebro Foods</span> Food processing company

Ebro Foods, S.A., formerly Ebro Puleva, is a Spanish food processing company. Ebro Foods is the world's largest producer of rice and the second biggest producer of pasta. The company's head office is in Madrid.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richelieu Foods</span> American food manufacturing company

Richelieu Foods is an American private label food manufacturing company founded in 1862 and headquartered in Wheeling, Illinois. It was previously owned by investment group Brynwood Partners and owned by investment group Centerview Partners LLC from 2010 to December 2017, when it was sold to Parsippany, New Jersey–based Freiberger USA Inc., a subsidiary of the German Südzucker AG.

The history of California bread as a prominent factor in the field of bread baking dates from the days of the California Gold Rush around 1849, encompassing the development of sourdough bread in San Francisco. It includes the rise of artisan bakeries in the 1980s, which strongly influenced what has been called the "Bread Revolution".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saffron Road</span>

Saffron Road is an American food brand. It is a subsidiary of American Halal Company, Inc. Saffron Road manufactures clean-label frozen foods, meal pouches, simmer sauces, family sized meals, and healthy snacks that are halal certified, all of which are made with ingredients from global cuisines. Saffron Road products are sold through 25,000 retail locations across the nation such as Whole Foods Market, Kroger, Safeway Inc., Giant Food Stores, Publix, Sprouts Farmers Market and H-E-B and Walmart, where it is the top natural protein-based entree.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sir Kensington's</span> American food brand owned by Unilever

Sir Kensington's is an American food company with headquarters in New York City, New York. It was founded by Mark Ramadan, Scott Norton, Brandon Child, and Win Bennett. The company produces Non-GMO Project Verified condiments including ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, ranch dressing, and "Fabanaise", a vegan mayo whose name is a portmanteau of the substitute ingredient aquafaba and mayonnaise which it mimics.

Purezza is a vegan pizzeria operating in Brighton, London and Manchester. It is Europe's first all-vegan pizzeria, opening its first branch in Brighton, UK, in November 2015.

Ann E. "Annie" Withey is an American farmer and entrepreneur. Withey developed Smartfood in 1984 and Annie's Homegrown in 1989, both with her husband at the time, Andrew Martin.

References

  1. 1 2 "Annie's Homegrown, Inc". fundinguniverse.com. Retrieved 2009-04-13.
  2. "Our History". Annie's. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  3. "Annie's Founder: Still Farming, Annie's Founder Stays Close To Roots As Company Wows Wall Street - Hartford Courant". Articles.courant.com. 2012-07-25. Retrieved 2014-03-23.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Casserly, Meghan (October 28, 2013). "The Homegrown Success (And Mild Indigestion) Of Annie's Natural Foods". Forbes .
  5. "Annie's Announces Filing of Registration Statement for Proposed Initial Public Offering". Annie's. 5 December 2011. Archived from the original on January 9, 2012.
  6. Annie's. "Annie's® Expands Into Frozen Category With Introduction of First-Ever Certified-Organic Rising Crust Pizza". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2024-10-27.
  7. Kennedy, Wally. "Annie's Homegrown lauds addition of Joplin bakery". Joplin Globe. Retrieved 2018-01-30.
  8. General Mills buys Annie's for $820 million

Further reading