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Annie's Homegrown (or simply Annie's) is an American organic food company owned by
General Mills General Mills, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, 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 ...
. 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. Its mascot is a rabbit named Bernie, who appears in the seal of approval called the "Rabbit of Approval" and another slogan called "Bunny of Approval" in 2020. The company also produces Annie's Naturals, which includes condiments, dressings, and barbecue sauces.


History

Annie Withey co-founded Annie's Homegrown with Andrew Martin in 1989. Initially, the company only sold "natural" macaroni and cheese in
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
supermarkets. In 1995, Annie's completed a direct public offering that raised $1.3 million. In 1999, John Foraker and his company Homegrown Natural Foods, which made flavored olive oils and mustards, invested $2 million in Annie's. An agreement was reached that would buy out Withey and Martin's shares in the company and make Annie's a private company. Withey became Annie's "inspirational president", and the company began distributing its products to chains like Costco, Kroger, and Safeway. 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 Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
to Napa, California, in 2004. Later in 2011, Annie's headquarters relocated from Napa to Berkeley, California. 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. The majority of Annie's stock was owned by Solera Capital, LLC. In December 2011, Annie's filed with the SEC to raise up to $100 million in an initial public offering. In January 2012, Annie's announced the introduction of a certified organic rising crust frozen pizza line. Annie's certified organic
pizza Pizza is an Italian cuisine, Italian, specifically Neapolitan cuisine, Neapolitan, dish typically consisting of a flat base of Leavening agent, leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomato, cheese, and other ingredients, baked at a high t ...
line is exclusive to Whole Foods Market. 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 Joplin is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, Jasper and Newton County, Missouri, Newton counties in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Missouri. The bulk of the city is in Jasper County, while the southern portion is in Newton County. J ...
.
General Mills General Mills, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, 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 ...
acquired Annie's on September 8, 2014, for $820 million. In August 2017, once the acquisition by General Mills was complete, President of Annie's Homegrown John Foraker announced his resignation on
LinkedIn LinkedIn () is an American business and employment-oriented Social networking service, social network. It was launched on May 5, 2003 by Reid Hoffman and Eric Ly. Since December 2016, LinkedIn has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Microsoft. ...
.


See also

* List of food companies


References


Further reading

*


External links

* {{General Mills Organic farming organizations Food manufacturers of the United States Companies based in Berkeley, California 1989 establishments in Connecticut Food and drink companies established in 1989 Food and drink in the San Francisco Bay Area Food and drink companies based in California General Mills brands 2014 mergers and acquisitions