Schwan's Company, formerly known as The Schwan Food Company, is a food company with approximately 8,500 employees. It originated in the United States as a family-owned business and in 2019 became a subsidiary of

CJ CheilJedang CJ CheilJedang Corporation () is a South Korean international food company based in Seoul that manufactures food ingredients, ambient, frozen and chilled packaged food products, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology. Its brands include Beksul, , Go ...

of South Korea. Schwan's Company's former subsidiary, Schwan's Home Service, rebranded as Yelloh in 2022, remained a privately-held, independent entity owned and operated by the Schwan family. Yelloh, which traced back to the Schwan's home delivery business launched by Marvin Schwan in 1952, sold

frozen food Freezing food Food preservation, preserves it from the time it is prepared to the time it is eaten. Since early times, farmers, fishermen, and trappers have preserved grains and produce in unheated buildings during the winter season. Freezing foo ...

s from home delivery trucks, in 13 states. In November 2024, it shut down its operations. Schwan's Company continues to be widely known for its consumer brands, including ''Freschetta Pizza'', ''Tony's Frozen Pizza'', ''

Mrs. Smith's Pies Mrs. Smith's Pies (a.k.a. Mrs. Smith's Bakeries) is one of the largest frozen pie brands in the United States. History The company was founded by Amanda Smith, a homemaker from Pottstown, Pennsylvania. Her son Robert P. started selling slices o ...

'', ''Edwards Frozen Pies'', ''Pagoda Egg Rolls'', and ''Red Baron Pizza''. The company also sells products to the food-service industry.

Corporate divisions

The company, as a subsidiary of CJ CheilJedang, has the following major business units: *Schwan's Consumer Brands markets frozen food products in grocery stores primarily in the Western Hemisphere. *Schwan's Food Service markets and distributes frozen-food products to the

food service The foodservice (US English) or catering (British and Commonwealth English) industry includes the businesses, institutions, and companies which prepare meals outside the home. It includes restaurants, grocery stores, school and hospital cafeteri ...

industry. *SFC Global Supply Chain is a manufacturing

cooperative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, coöperative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomy, autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned a ...

that coordinates the company's production processes and helps develop new products. *Schwan's Strategic Partner Solutions helps other companies produce and package their products

Company history

In 1952, Marvin Schwan (1929–1993) began home delivery of his family's homemade ice cream (Schwan's Dairy and Dairy Lunch) to rural western Minnesota. Schwan's expanded to cover the

Midwestern United States The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

and made a number of acquisitions, including the Holiday Ice Cream Company and Russell Dairy. In 1957, the product line was expanded to include juice concentrates, and in 1962, Schwan's began selling frozen fish products. During the 1970s, the company began selling pizza to schools, launched the Red Baron pizza brand for sale in grocery stores, and formed the Red Baron Squadron flight team to promote the brand. During the 1980s, Schwan's made further acquisitions, including pizza manufacturer Sabatasso Foods and Asian-foods manufacturer Minh Food Corporation. Schwan's opened a plant in Leyland, Preston,

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, in 1989. In 1990, Schwans started Schwans Canada, with an ice cream plant in Manitoba and routes in Saskatchewan and Alberta, but they ceased operations in December 1999. In 1993, founder Marvin Schwan died of a heart attack at the age of 64. The Marvin Schwan Memorial Drive in Marshall is named after him. His older brother, Alfred Schwan, who had been the company's head of manufacturing, was named president. In October 1994, the

Minnesota Department of Health Minnesota ( ) is a state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the south, and Nor ...

informed the company that 67 people in southern Minnesota had been infected with salmonella enteritis and that there was a strong statistical link between the illnesses and Schwan's ice cream. Schwan quickly halted the production and sale of the company's ice cream and began a public-awareness campaign asking people not to eat Schwan's ice cream products. An investigation found that the source of the contamination was a contractor's truck that had delivered ice cream pre-mix to Schwan's. The trucking company had inadequately washed the tanker truck after transporting raw, unpasteurized eggs. In 1996, Schwan's introduced the Freschetta pizza line and acquired La Roue du Pays d'Auge, a frozen foods producer in France. In 1998, Schwan's opened a pizza plant in , Germany. In 2001, Schwan's acquired the Edwards dessert company from

Ripplewood Holdings Ripplewood is an American private equity firm based in New York City that focuses on leveraged buyouts, venture capital, late stage venture, growth capital, management buyouts, leveraged recapitalizations and other illiquid investments. Ripplewo ...

, and in 2003, the

Mrs. Smith's Mrs. Smith's Pies (a.k.a. Mrs. Smith's Bakeries) is one of the largest frozen pie brands in the United States. History The company was founded by Amanda Smith, a homemaker from Pottstown, Pennsylvania. Her son Robert P. started selling slices o ...

dessert company from

Flowers Foods Flowers Foods, headquartered in Thomasville, Georgia, is a producer and marketer of packed bakery food. The company operates 47 bakeries, producing bread, buns, rolls, snack cakes, pastries, and tortillas. Flowers Foods' products are sold regi ...

. Also in 2003, the corporation changed its name from Schwan's Sales Enterprises to The Schwan Food Company. In 2010, Schwan's teamed up with the TV series ''

Top Chef ''Top Chef'' is an American reality competition television series which premiered on Bravo in March 2006. The show features chefs competing against each other in culinary challenges. The contestants are judged by a panel of professional chefs ...

'' and served dishes that were made famous by chefs that were featured on the

Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels * Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 * Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing compa ...

television series. In February 2019, the company announced it had completed the sale of 80% of the privately-held company's stock to

of South Korea, effectively ending the Schwan family's control of the company. Most of Schwan's continued to exist as a subsidiary of CJ, but the Schwan family retained 100% of the ownership of Schwan's Home Delivery Service. In March 2022, Schwan's Home Delivery announced that it was rebranding as Yelloh, a reference to the color of its trucks. , Yelloh has been operated by Cygnus Home Service, LLC, which is independently owned by members of the Schwan family. On September 23, 2024, Yelloh announced that the company would cease operations on November 8, 2024, citing "insurmountable business challenges".

References

External links

Official siteHome delivery site
{{CJ Group Food recalls Privately held companies based in Minnesota Food and drink companies based in Minnesota Frozen food brands Food and drink companies established in 1952 1952 establishments in Minnesota Frozen pizza brands Lyon County, Minnesota American subsidiaries of foreign companies 2019 mergers and acquisitions CJ Group subsidiaries