Company type | Subsidiary |
---|---|
Industry | Retail, food |
Founded | 1952 |
Founders | Ross Erin Butler Sr. Francis Nephi Grigg Golden Grigg [1] [2] [3] |
Headquarters | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
Parent | Kraft Heinz |
Website | oreida.com |
Ore-Ida is an American brand of potato-based frozen foods currently produced and distributed by Kraft Heinz's, H.J. Heinz Company Brands LLC. based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Ore-Ida's primary production facility is located in Ontario, Oregon near the Idaho border where the company was originally founded in 1949. [3] [4]
In 1934, entrepreneurs Francis Nephi Grigg and Golden Grigg began growing sweet corn in eastern Oregon. Their first company, "Grigg Brothers", became the largest distributor of sweet corn in the United States. [1] [5] [2] In 1949, with financial backing from their brother-in-law Otis Williams, the brothers rented a frozen food plant located in Ontario and converted it into a potato-processing facility. The three purchased the facility around 1952 after the plant went into foreclosure. [1] [5] [6] The company was officially founded that year as the "Oregon Frozen Foods Company". [6] [7]
The company initially produced and sold frozen corn and French fries. [1] [5] [8] In 1953, Nephi, Golden, Otis, and Ross developed Tater Tots, bite-sized "logs" formed from seasoned slivers of potatoes, which were leftovers from French fry production. [1] [3] [9] The name “tater tots” can be attributed to Clora Lay Orton after the brothers created a contest with their friends and employees to create a name for the potato “logs". [10] Tater Tots are today considered the brand's most well known product. [9] [2] [4]
In 1960, the company built a second plant in Burley, Idaho. [6] [11] The company's name is a syllabic abbreviation of the first few letters of Oregon and Idaho and the original logo consisted of the outlines of Oregon and Idaho with Ore-Ida superimposed in italicized letters. [1]
After going public in 1961, [1] [12] the Ore-Ida brand was acquired by the H. J. Heinz Company in 1965. [1] [11] [13] The Heinz company coined Ore-Ida's long-time advertising slogan: “When it says Ore-Ida, it’s All Righta.” [11]
McCain Foods purchased Ore-Ida's foodservice division in 1997, acquiring five of the company's plants, including the Burley location. [2] [14] [15] Ore-Ida's division headquarters were located in Boise until 1999, when a new frozen foods division was created based at Heinz's corporate headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. [14] [16]
Company type | Subsidiary |
---|---|
Industry | Retail, food |
Founded | 1952 |
Founders | Ross Erin Butler Sr. Francis Nephi Grigg Golden Grigg [1] [2] [3] |
Headquarters | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
Parent | Kraft Heinz |
Website | oreida.com |
Ore-Ida is an American brand of potato-based frozen foods currently produced and distributed by Kraft Heinz's, H.J. Heinz Company Brands LLC. based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Ore-Ida's primary production facility is located in Ontario, Oregon near the Idaho border where the company was originally founded in 1949. [3] [4]
In 1934, entrepreneurs Francis Nephi Grigg and Golden Grigg began growing sweet corn in eastern Oregon. Their first company, "Grigg Brothers", became the largest distributor of sweet corn in the United States. [1] [5] [2] In 1949, with financial backing from their brother-in-law Otis Williams, the brothers rented a frozen food plant located in Ontario and converted it into a potato-processing facility. The three purchased the facility around 1952 after the plant went into foreclosure. [1] [5] [6] The company was officially founded that year as the "Oregon Frozen Foods Company". [6] [7]
The company initially produced and sold frozen corn and French fries. [1] [5] [8] In 1953, Nephi, Golden, Otis, and Ross developed Tater Tots, bite-sized "logs" formed from seasoned slivers of potatoes, which were leftovers from French fry production. [1] [3] [9] The name “tater tots” can be attributed to Clora Lay Orton after the brothers created a contest with their friends and employees to create a name for the potato “logs". [10] Tater Tots are today considered the brand's most well known product. [9] [2] [4]
In 1960, the company built a second plant in Burley, Idaho. [6] [11] The company's name is a syllabic abbreviation of the first few letters of Oregon and Idaho and the original logo consisted of the outlines of Oregon and Idaho with Ore-Ida superimposed in italicized letters. [1]
After going public in 1961, [1] [12] the Ore-Ida brand was acquired by the H. J. Heinz Company in 1965. [1] [11] [13] The Heinz company coined Ore-Ida's long-time advertising slogan: “When it says Ore-Ida, it’s All Righta.” [11]
McCain Foods purchased Ore-Ida's foodservice division in 1997, acquiring five of the company's plants, including the Burley location. [2] [14] [15] Ore-Ida's division headquarters were located in Boise until 1999, when a new frozen foods division was created based at Heinz's corporate headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. [14] [16]