Fage International S.A. ( el, Φάγε ) is an international

dairy A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting or processing (or both) of animal milk – mostly from cows or buffaloes, but also from goats, sheep, horses, or camels – for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on ...

company founded in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, and as of 2012 headquartered in

Strassen, Luxembourg Strassen ( lb, Stroossen ) is a commune and town in central Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Luxembourg. In 2016, Strassen's population counted 8500 citizens. The current mayor of Strassen is Nico Pundel ( CSV). Populated places The commu ...

. It is one of the major dairy brands in Greece. It manufactures dairy products including

milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. Immune factors and immune ...

yogurt Yogurt (; , from tr, yoğurt, also spelled yoghurt, yogourt or yoghourt) is a food produced by bacterial Fermentation (food), fermentation of milk. The bacteria used to make yogurt are known as ''yogurt cultures''. Fermentation of sugars in t ...

and

ice cream Ice cream is a sweetened frozen food typically eaten as a snack or dessert. It may be made from milk or cream and is flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit such as str ...

. The word φάγε (pronounced "fa-yeh") is both the singular imperative verb meaning 'Eat!' and the initials Φ.Α.Γ.Ε./F.A.G.E. (Φιλίππου Αδελφοί Γαλακτοκομικές Επιχειρήσεις/"Filippou Adelphoi Galaktokomikes Epicheiriseis" or "Filippou Bros. Dairy Co.").

History

Yogurt

In 1974 the current Fage factory was built. New varieties and flavors were introduced shortly after. In 1981, exports to the European market began. Total, the first commercial

strained yogurt Strained yogurt, Greek yogurt, yogurt cheese, sack yogurt, or kerned yogurt is yogurt that has been strained to remove most of its whey, resulting in a thicker consistency than normal unstrained yogurt, while still preserving the distinctive so ...

, was introduced, becoming a huge success.

Cheese

In 1991 Fage entered the cheese market, mostly manufacturing traditional Greek cheese. It produces, packs and supplies to consumers in Greece and abroad a variety of cheeses including its trademark ''Feta'' cheese. Today, Fage has a large range of cheeses including: ''Feta'', ''Graviera'', ''Trikalino'', ''Trikalino Light'', ''Gouda'', ''Edam'', ''Plagia'', ''Regato'', ''Sandwich Cheese'', ''Junior portions'', ''Junior slices'', ''Junior Meridoules'', and ''Flair''.

Milk

In 1993 Fage entered the fresh milk market, introducing ''FAGE Fresh Milk'' all over Greece. In this same year, the company built new factories exclusively for fresh pasteurized milk, a new line of pasteurization, homogenization, new machinery, and packaging. Additionally, after a significant investment in research and machinery, Fage presented a new innovative product to the Greek market, ''High Pasteurized Milk'', which created a new category of milk. Today, Fage offers a wide range of milk including its most popular ''Farma Milk''.

Current operations

In June 1999, the

dioxin Dioxin may refer to: * 1,2-Dioxin or 1,4-Dioxin, two unsaturated heterocyclic 6-membered rings where two carbon atoms have been replaced by oxygen atoms, giving the molecular formula C4H4O2 *Dibenzo-1,4-dioxin, the parent compound also known as ...

problems that plagued several milk exporters from Belgium started a public scare that resulted in the disposal of all dioxin-affected milk. Several months later by the Fall, Fage's dairy products became free of dioxins and the company began to use milk exported from decontaminated countries. In the late-1990s Fage began marketing its products and began selling in Belgium, France, Germany,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, and the United Kingdom. From 2001 the company entered the United States where it has located its headquarters in Johnstown, NY. The yogurt was later featured in ''

Saveur ''Saveur'' is an online gourmet, food, wine, and travel magazine that publishes essays about various world cuisines. The publication was co-founded by Dorothy Kalins, Michael Grossman, Christopher Hirsheimer, and Colman Andrews, who was also th ...

'' magazine. In October 2012, the company announced that it would be moving its headquarters out of Greece to Luxembourg. Reasons for the move include more favorable tax conditions, better access to bank funding, and a reduced exposure to the Greek financial crisis.

Advertising

In 2007, Fage put a billboard along the route of the

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual parade in New York City presented by the U.S.-based department store chain Macy's. The Parade first took place in 1924, tying it for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States with ...

. The billboard looked as if a

Tweety Tweety is a yellow canary in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of animated cartoons. The name "Tweety" is a play on words, as it originally meant "sweetie", along with "tweet" being an English onomatopoeia for t ...

balloon had become stuck in the yogurt. In 2011, Fage began airing "its first television advertisements in North America," featuring

voiceover Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non-diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentations. ...

work by actor

Willem Dafoe Willem James Dafoe (; born July 22, 1955) is an American actor. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Willem Dafoe, various accolades, including the Volpi Cup for Best Actor, in addition to receiving nominations for ...

References

External links

*{{Official website, http://home.fage/ Food and drink companies established in 1926 Dairy products companies of Greece Brand name yogurts Food and drink companies of Luxembourg Greek basketball chairmen and investors Greek brands Companies based in Luxembourg City Greek companies established in 1926