Welch Foods Inc., commonly known as Welch's, is an American company, headquartered in Concord,

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. It has been owned by the National Grape Cooperative Association, a

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

of grape growers, since 1956.Hays, Constance L
How Too Much Purple Could Mean Less Green.
''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

.'' April 18, 1999. Welch's is particularly known for its

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began approximately 8,0 ...

juices, jams and jellies made from dark Concord grapes and its white

Niagara grape Niagara may refer to: Geography Niagara Falls and nearby places In both the United States and Canada * Niagara Falls, the famous waterfalls in the Niagara River * Niagara River, part of the U.S.–Canada border * Niagara Escarpment, the cli ...

juice. The company also manufactures and markets an array of other products, including refrigerated juices, frozen and shelf-stable concentrates, organic grape juice, fruit snacks, and

dried fruit Dried fruit is fruit from which the majority of the original water content has been removed prior to cooking or being eaten on its own. Drying may occur either naturally, by sun, through the use of industrial dehydrators, or by freeze drying. ...

. Welch's has also licensed its name for a line of grape-flavored

soft drink A soft drink (see #Terminology, § Terminology for other names) is a class of non-alcoholic drink, usually (but not necessarily) Carbonated water, carbonated, and typically including added Sweetness, sweetener. Flavors used to be Natural flav ...

s since 1974. Welch's grape and

strawberry The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown Hybrid (biology), hybrid plant cultivated worldwide for its fruit. The genus ''Fragaria'', the strawberries, is in the rose family, Rosaceae. The fruit ...

soda flavors are currently licensed to Global Beverage Corporation. Other popular products that use the Welch's name are the fruit snacks made by The Promotion In Motion Companies, Inc.

History

The company was founded in Vineland,

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, in 1869 by teetotal dentist Thomas Bramwell Welch and his son Charles Welch. In 1956, the company was sold to the National Grape Cooperative Association, which comprises 1,300 grape growers located in

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, Washington and

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada. In the 1960s, Welch's was a major sponsor of the ABC primetime animated comedy series ''

The Flintstones ''The Flintstones'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera, Hanna-Barbera Productions, which takes place in a romanticized Stone Age setting and follows the titular family, the Flintstones, and their next-door neighbors, the R ...

''; its characters were prominently featured in Welch's TV commercials on that show, and on jars of Welch's grape jelly which could be used as a drinking glass after the product had been fully used. In the early 1970s,

The Archies The Archies are an American fictional rock band featured in media produced by, and related to, Archie Comics. They are best remembered for their appearance in the animated TV series '' The Archie Show''. In the context of the series, the band ...

cartoon characters were on the jars.

Physical plant

The oldest extant structure associated with the company is Welch Factory Building No. 1, located at

Westfield, New York Westfield is a town in the western part of Chautauqua County, New York, United States. The population was 4,513 at the 2020 census. Westfield is also the name of a village within the town, containing 65% of the town's population. This unique ...

, and listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1983. Their largest manufacturing plant is located 17 miles away in North East,

History of Welch's Grape Juice

The method of pasteurizing grape juice to halt the fermentation has been attributed to a British–American

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

and

dentist A dentist, also known as a dental doctor, dental physician, dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry, the branch of medicine focused on the teeth, gums, and mouth. The dentist's supporting team aids in provi ...

, Thomas Bramwell Welch (1825–1903) in 1869. Welch was an adherent to the Wesleyan Methodist Connexion which strongly opposed "manufacturing, buying, selling, or using intoxicating liquors" and advocated the use of unfermented grape juice instead of wine for administering

Holy Communion The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. Christians believe that the rite was instituted by J ...

during the church service. A few years earlier, Welch had relocated to

Vineland, New Jersey Vineland is a City (New Jersey), city and the most populous municipality in Cumberland County, New Jersey, Cumberland County, within the U.S. state of New Jersey. Bridgeton, New Jersey, Bridgeton and Vineland are the two principal cities of the ...

, a town started in 1861 by Philadelphia land developer

Charles K. Landis Charles Kline Landis (March 16, 1833 – June 12, 1900) was a property developer in South Jersey, who was the founder and developer of Vineland, New Jersey, Vineland and Sea Isle City, New Jersey, Sea Isle City. Career His first foray as ...

(1833–1900) to create his own alcohol-free

utopian A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia'', which describes a fictional island soci ...

society, a " Temperance Town" based on agriculture and progressive thinking. Landis declared that he was "about to build a city, and an agricultural and fruit-growing colony around it." The population reached 5,500 by 1865.Our People of the Century: Charles K. Landis - Founder of a City, Creator of a Dream
.

Cumberland County, New Jersey Cumberland County is a coastal county located on the Delaware Bay in the Southern Shore Region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 census, the county was the state's 16th-most-populous county,Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

grape growers to Vineland, offering 20 acres (81,000 m²) of land that had to be cleared and used to grow grapes. Welch had moved to the region following his sister who was one of Vineland's earliest residents and began to produce an "unfermented wine" (grape juice) from locally grown grapes that was marketed as "Dr. Welch's Unfermented Wine". This product became "Welch's Grape Juice" in 1893 when Welch and his son Charles E. Welch (also a practicing dentist) had decided to incorporate in 1893 as the Welch's Grape Juice Company at Westfield,

. The product was given to visitors at international exhibitions. As the

temperance movement The temperance movement is a social movement promoting Temperance (virtue), temperance or total abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and ...

grew, so did the popularity of grape juice. In 1913, Secretary of State

William Jennings Bryan William Jennings Bryan (March 19, 1860 – July 26, 1925) was an American lawyer, orator, and politician. He was a dominant force in the History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, running three times as the party' ...

served grape juice instead of wine during a formal diplomatic function, and in 1914,

Josephus Daniels Josephus Daniels (May 18, 1862 – January 15, 1948) was a newspaper editor, Secretary of the Navy under President Woodrow Wilson, and U.S. Ambassador to Mexico under President Franklin D. Roosevelt. He managed ''The News & Observer'' in R ...

, Secretary of the

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

, forbade any alcoholic drinks on board naval ships, actively replacing them with grape juice. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the company supplied "grapelade", a type of grape jam, to the military and advertised aggressively. Subsequent development of new grape products and sponsorship of radio and television programs made the company very successful.

Current products

Welch's produces a variety of juices, jellies/jams, and fruit snacks.

Juices

100% juices

* Concord Grape * Concord Grape with Calcium * Concord Grape with Fiber * Red Grape * White Grape * White Grape Cherry * White Grape Peach * Black Cherry Concord Grape * Apple * Pineapple Apple * Orange

Juice drinks

* Fruit Punch * Mango Twist * Orange Pineapple Apple * Peach Medley * Cranberry Juice Cocktail * Apple Cranberry * Grape * Passion Fruit * Mango Passion Fruit * Mango Pineapple * Orange Pineapple * Strawberry Kiwi * Tropical Carrot * Cherry Pomegranate

Refrigerated juices

* Concord Grape * Passion Fruit * Berry Pineapple Passion Fruit * Guava Pineapple * Mountain Berry * Mango Twist * Dragon Fruit Mango * Watermelon Lemonade

Diet and light juices

* Diet Concord Grape * Diet Cranberry Grape * Light Concord Grape

Sparkling Juices

* Sparkling Red Grape * Sparkling White Grape * Sparling Rosé Grape * Sparkling Cider * Sparkling Sangria * Sparkling Strawberry Daiquiri

Jellies/jams

* Concord Grape Jelly * Concord Grape Jam * Natural Concord Grape Spread * Reduced Sugar Concord Grape Jelly * Strawberry Spread * Natural Strawberry Spread

Snacks

* PB&J sealed crustless sandwiches * Fruit Snacks * Juicefuls * Fruit Strips * Fruit 'n Yogurt * Fresh Fruit * Organic Juice Ice Bar * Sparkling Soda * Slush Pouch (Concord Berry, Concord Grape, White Grape Cherry, and White Grape Peach) * Protein Smoothies * Gelatin (Grape and Strawberry Peach)

Advertising

Welch's long-time traditional advertising partner is The Via Agency in

Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...

and in the Fall of 2016 announced that Jack Morton Worldwide's Genuine group will be handling the mobile, social, and digital media and strategy. The company is looking to reach consumers on digital channels with advertising aimed at informing about Welch's products, ingredients, and the company's long heritage. Welch's has featured people in their television commercials such as: * Travis Tedford * Emily Mae Young * Isla Ng * Shyann McClure *

Alton Brown Alton Crawford Brown Jr. (born July 30, 1962) is an American television personality, food show presenter, food scientist, author, voice actor, and cinematographer. He is the creator and host of the Food Network television show '' Good Eats'' th ...

References

External links

{{commons category
Welch's company homepage

Welch's soft drink page

National Grape Cooperative Association
Agricultural marketing cooperatives Drink brands Companies based in Middlesex County, Massachusetts Companies established in 1869 Food manufacturers of the United States Vineland, New Jersey 1869 establishments in New Jersey Food and drink companies established in 1869 Agricultural cooperatives in the United States Grape juice Cooperatives based in Massachusetts