Ry-Krisp is an American brand of
rye
Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...
crisp bread
Crispbread is a flat and dry type of bread, containing mostly rye flour. Crispbreads are lightweight and keep fresh for a very long time due to their lack of water. Crispbread is a staple food and was for a long time considered a poor man's diet ...
that was introduced in 1899. Based in
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
, the Ry-Krisp plant was purchased by
Ralston Purina
Ralston Purina Company was a St. Louis, Missouri,–based American conglomerate with substantial holdings in animal feed, food, pet food, consumer products, and entertainment. On December 12, 2001, it merged with Swiss food-giant Nestlé's ...
in 1926. In 1994, the Ralston portion of Ralston Purina was spun off into a new company called
Ralcorp
Ralcorp Holdings is an American manufacturer of various food products, including breakfast cereal, cookies, crackers, chocolate, snack foods, mayonnaise, pasta, and peanut butter. The company is based in St. Louis, Missouri. The majority of the ...
Holdings, including the RyKrisp operations. Ralcorp was acquired by
ConAgra Foods
Conagra Brands, Inc. (formerly ConAgra Foods) is an American consumer packaged goods holding company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Conagra makes and sells products under various brand names that are available in supermarkets, restaurants, ...
in 2013.
In January 2015 ConAgra Foods announced that the factory that produces RyKrisp would be closed and the product would be discontinued due to declining demand. RyKrisp Inc. bought the brand in April 2015 with plans to revitalize it once a new manufacturing partner was found. A larger-scale commercialization was planned for October 2015 with commercial production expected some time after that. As of fall 2018 production had not yet started. The owners of the RyKrisp brand gave legal issues as a reason. The reason for the legal issues lay with a dispute between RyKrisp and the baking company, Distinctive Foods. Due to concerns about Distinctive Food's ability to produce product, RyKrisp moved the equipment purchased from ConAgra to their own warehouse. RyKrisp alleged that Distinctive's CEO moved the equipment back to its own facility and refused to return it, demanding an additional $50,000. At this point RyKrisp contracted with iBake, who later cancelled the contract after Distinctive allegedly sent a cease and desist letter to iBake.
RyKrisp took Distinctive to court, where they were defended by
State Automobile Mutual Insurance Company in the case ''State Auto Property & Casualty Insurance Co. v. Distinctive Foods, LLC''. State Auto found that Distinctive's policy did not provide coverage in this instance and the case went to trial.
In October 2019 the Ry-Krisp owners wrote that their "attorneys succeeded in securing an $8.3 million verdict from a Cook County jury in favor of Firm client RyKrisp, LLC in a dispute between the rye cracker producer and (its contract manufacturer). ... The judgment ensures that RyKrisp will recover damages and lost profits following (the) conversion of RyKrisp's equipment and tortious efforts to interfere with RyKrisp's business."
On 23 May 2024, RyKrisps stated that due to the costs involved with litigation and lack of funds they would no longer be able to go forward with production.
See also
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List of crackers
This is a list of crackers. A cracker is a baked good typically made from a grain-and-flour dough and usually manufactured in large quantities. Crackers (roughly equivalent to savory biscuits in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man) are usua ...
*
Ryvita
References
External links
Official Ry-Krisp websiteMNopedia.org: Ry-Krisp entry— ''the Minnesota Encyclopedia''.
{{ConAgra
Crackers (food)
Brand name crackers
American companies established in 1899
Food and drink companies established in 1899
1899 establishments in Minnesota
Conagra Brands brands
Ralston Purina products
American brands