Sargento Foods Inc. is an American food producer best known for its
cheese
Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During production, ...
. It was founded in 1953 in
Plymouth, Wisconsin by Leonard Gentine and Joseph Sartori. The company name is a combination of Sartori and Gentine, with an "o" added to make the name sound Italian, as the company specialized in Italian-style cheeses. Sargento is one of the largest privately held companies in the United States, and is one of the country's largest retail cheese companies. The company offers
profit sharing
Profit sharing is various incentive plans introduced by businesses that provide direct or indirect payments to employees that depend on company's profitability in addition to employees' regular salary and bonuses. In publicly traded companies thes ...
, tuition reimbursement and
benefits
Benefit or benefits may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* ''Benefit'' (album), by Jethro Tull, 1970
* "Benefits" (''How I Met Your Mother''), a 2009 TV episode
* '' The Benefit'', a 2012 Egyptian action film
Businesses and organisatio ...
for its employees. The company has been a sponsor in American motorsports for many years; for example, it is prominently displayed on
Road America
Road America is a motorsport road course located near Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, United States on Wisconsin Highway 67. It has hosted races since the 1950s and currently hosts races in the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series, WeatherTech SportsCar Champ ...
raceway.
Products
Sargento was the first company to sell packaged shredded cheese, and the first to develop
zippered packaging for its cheeses. The company also produces and markets specialty cheeses, which it purveys on its website and in catalogs.
[Plunketts Food Industry Almanac 2008: The Only Comprehensive Guide to Food Companies and Trends]
p. 483. Additional products include sauces, snack cheeses and snack foods, and the company also manufactures custom cheese and food products for corporate clients.
[
In early 2017, Sargento recalled seven cheeses for possible listeria contamination.]
Works
* Sargento Foods Inc. (2012)
''Pizza Recipes''
Publications International.
* Publications International Staff (2010)
''Sargento Mac and Cheese Recipes''
Publications International, Limited.
*Treated Like Family: How an Entrepreneur and His "Employee Family" Built Sargento, a Billion-Dollar Cheese Company. by Tom Faley
See also
* List of cheesemakers
This is a list of notable cheesemakers. Cheesemakers are people or companies that make cheese, who have developed the knowledge and skills required to convert milk into cheese. Cheesemaking involves controlling precisely the types and amounts of ...
* List of dairy product companies in the United States
References
{{Reflist
External links
Official website
Dairy products companies of the United States
Cheesemakers
Food and drink companies based in Wisconsin
Food and drink companies established in 1953
1953 establishments in Wisconsin
American companies established in 1953