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Utz Brands, Inc. (), more commonly known as Utz, is an American snack food company based in
Hanover, Pennsylvania Hanover is a borough in York County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 16,429 at the 2020 census. Located southwest of York and north-northwest of Baltimore, Maryland, the town is situated in a productive agricultural region. It i ...
. The company produces a variety of
potato chips Potato chips (North American English and Australian English; often just chip) or crisp (British English and Hiberno-English) are thin slices of potato (or a thin deposit of potato paste) that has been deep frying, deep fried, baking, baked, ...
,
pretzels A pretzel ( ; from or , ) is a type of baked pastry made from dough that is commonly shaped into a knot. The traditional pretzel shape is a distinctive symmetrical form, with the ends of a long strip of dough intertwined and then twisted ba ...
, and other snacks, with most products sold under their family of brands. Utz is also a snack supplier to warehouse clubs and merchandisers.


History


Early years

Utz Brands began in 1921 as Hanover Home Brand Potato Chips when William and Salie Utz began making potato chips out of their home in
Hanover, Pennsylvania Hanover is a borough in York County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 16,429 at the 2020 census. Located southwest of York and north-northwest of Baltimore, Maryland, the town is situated in a productive agricultural region. It i ...
with an initial investment of US $300 (equal to about $ now). The hand-operated equipment used at the time produced approximately 50 pounds of potato chips per hour. Salie cooked chips and Bill delivered them to local grocery stores and farmers’ markets in the Hanover and
Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...
areas. The couple relocated the company's operations to a concrete building in the family's backyard. In 1938, production was boosted with the purchase of an automatic fryer capable of producing 300 pounds of chips an hour.


Post-war years and expansion

In 1938, Francis Xavier Rice joined the company after marrying Arlene Utz. In 1949, post-war success allowed the company to build a new production facility on in Hanover. Salie and Bill died in 1965 and 1968, respectively, at which time Rice became president of the company. The company purchased two more Hanover-based production facilities during the 1970s. Rice retired in 1978, and his son
Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...
became company president, while Arlene Utz Rice remained as the company's chairman of the board. Utz's largest production facility and its current administrative headquarters was completed in 1983.


Modern era

During the late 1980s, sales of Utz pretzels grew by 20 percent annually; by 1991, pretzel sales composed almost 10 percent of total revenue. By the middle of the decade, annual sales of Utz products topped $100 million. At that time, the company had a workforce of one thousand employees. A 2009 plan to merge Utz with rival
Snyder's of Hanover Snyder's of Hanover, Inc. is an American bakery and pretzel brand distribution company based in Hanover, Pennsylvania, specializing in German traditional pretzels. Its products are sold throughout the United States, Canada, many European nations, ...
was abandoned after an antitrust inquiry by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. In 2011, Utz Brands acquired Zappe Endeavors and its affiliated entities, which manufacture and market Zapp's, Dirty's, and California Chips brand potato chips. This acquisition included Zapp's plants in
Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...
,
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
, and Pennsylvania, thereby making Utz a national snack food manufacturer overnight. Management of Zappe remained in place after the acquisition. In 2011, Utz acquired the Wachusett Potato Chip Company in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. In 2012, Utz Brands acquired The Bachman Company with Utz buying the intellectual property rights, distribution, and Ephrata manufacturing facility; however, the Bachman family continued to use its Reading and Hyde Park facilities under the name Savor Street Foods Inc. to make private label products and other goods for Utz. Utz Brands remained family-operated at that time, with Michael Rice as chairman and his son-in-law Dylan Lissette as chief executive officer. In 2016, Utz Brands acquired snack food company Golden Flake. In December 2017, Utz acquired Phoenix-based Inventure Foods, Inc. which manufactured specialty food brands including Boulder Canyon Foods (founded in
Boulder, Colorado Boulder is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city in Boulder County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the most ...
in 1994), TGI Fridays, and Vidalia. In October 2019, Utz acquired rival snack food company Snyder of Berlin in
Berlin, Pennsylvania Berlin is a borough located approximately 75 miles southeast of Pittsburgh in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,004 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. ...
(not to be confused with Snyder's of Hanover) from
Pinnacle Foods Pinnacle Foods, Inc., is a packaged foods company headquartered in Parsippany, New Jersey that specializes in shelf-stable and frozen foods. The company became a subsidiary of Conagra Brands on October 26, 2018. History The company was foun ...
. In August 2020, Utz became a publicly traded company after combining with Collier Creek Holdings. Utz announced in November 2020 that it would acquire Truco Enterprises, manufacturer of On the Border tortilla chips and dips, for $480 million. They announced in January 2021 that they would acquire Vitner's for $25 million. In May 2021, Utz acquired the supplier Fastida Foods for $41 million. In December 2021, Utz acquired R.W. Garcia for $56 million. In January 2022, Utz acquired the distribution companies Clem Snacks and J&D Snacks. In February 2022, Utz bought a manufacturing plant from Evans Foods Group for $38.4 million. In April 2023, Utz Brands announced that the Golden Flakes factory in Birmingham, Alabama will cease operations around July 3, 2023.


Sponsorship

Until the 2012 season, Utz was a sponsor of the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
and had been part of the right field of
Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx in New York City. It is the home field of Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. The stadium opened in April 2009, replacing the Yankee S ...
for many seasons. The company also sponsored the
Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...
. Utz currently sponsors the
Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...
and the
Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...
. Utz has also sponsored the
Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...
for multiple seasons. In addition, Utz became the official vendor of all pre-packaged snacks for the
Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its home g ...
starting in 2014. Also, Utz sponsors the
Connecticut Tigers The Norwich Sea Unicorns are a baseball team located in Norwich, Connecticut. From 2010 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's New York–Penn League (NYPL) as the Class A Short Season affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They play ...
&
Erie SeaWolves The Erie SeaWolves are an American professional baseball team based in Erie, Pennsylvania. They compete in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) as a member of the Eastern League's Southwest Division, serving as the Double-A affiliate of the Detroit Ti ...
, of Minor League Baseball. In 2018, the company signed a multi-year sponsorship deal with
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
to become the league's "official salty snack." The following year, Utz became the presenting sponsor of the
2019 National League Division Series The 2019 National League Division Series were two best-of-five series in Major League Baseball (MLB) to determine the participating teams of the 2019 National League Championship Series. The three divisional winners, seeded first through third, a ...
.


Products

Utz manufactures a wide variety of potato chips and pretzels – of potato chips and of pretzels every week. Utz also produces
cheese curls Cheese puffs, cheese curls, cheese balls, cheese ball puffs, cheesy puffs, or corn curls are a puffed grain, puffed maize, corn snack food, snack, coated with a mixture of cheese or cheese-flavored Powder (substance), powders. They are manufactur ...
, sunflower chips,
tortilla chips A tortilla chip is a snack food made from corn tortilla, which are cut into triangles and then fried or baked (alternatively they may be discs pressed out of corn masa then fried or baked). Corn tortillas are made of nixtamalized corn, vegetab ...
,
popcorn Popcorn (also called popped corn, popcorns, or pop-corn) is a variety of corn kernel which expands and puffs up when heated. The term also refers to the snack food produced by the expansion. It is one of the oldest snacks, with evidence of p ...
,
pork rinds Pork rind is the culinary term for the skin of a pig. It can be used in many different ways. It can be rendered, fried in fat, baked, or roasted to produce a kind of pork cracklings (US), crackling (UK), or scratchings (UK); these are se ...
, and party mix. Specialty items include chocolate-covered pretzels, seasonal pretzel barrels and sports mixes. Utz also carries dips, salsas, and crackers. In total, Utz makes 395 different types and flavors of snacks. Utz regular potato chips are cooked in
cottonseed oil Cottonseed oil is cooking oil from the seeds of cotton plants of various species, mainly ''Gossypium hirsutum'' and ''Gossypium herbaceum'', that are grown for cotton fiber, animal feed, and oil. cottonseed, Cotton seed has a similar structure to ...
; its Kettle Classic line in
peanut oil Peanut oil, also known as groundnut oil or arachis oil, is a vegetable oil derived from peanuts. The oil usually has a mild or neutral flavor but, if made with roasted peanuts, has a stronger peanut flavor and aroma. It is often used in Americ ...
; and its Grandma Utz varieties in
lard Lard is a Quasi-solid, semi-solid white fat product obtained by rendering (animal products), rendering the adipose tissue, fatty tissue of a domestic pig, pig.
. Additionally, Utz produces an
organic Organic may refer to: * Organic, of or relating to an organism, a living entity * Organic, of or relating to an anatomical organ Chemistry * Organic matter, matter that has come from a once-living organism, is capable of decay or is the product ...
product line, which includes products certified organic by Quality Assurance International, as well as a "natural" product line that includes, potato chips cooked in
sunflower oil Sunflower oil is the non-volatile oil pressed from the seeds of the sunflower (''Helianthus annuus''). Sunflower oil is commonly used in food as a frying oil, and in cosmetic formulations as an emollient. Sunflower oil is primarily compos ...
. The company incorporates the "Snacking Smart" icon on a number of its products, indicating a healthier snacking choice to the consumer.


Mail order and online store

During the mid-1980s, Utz started a catalog
mail order Mail order is the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote methods such as: * Sending an order form in the mail * Placing an order by telephone call ...
service allowing consumers to order Utz products by phone for home delivery. In 1998, Utz added online ordering at their website utzsnacks.com.


Little Utz Girl mascot and logo

The official mascot of Utz Brands is the Little Utz Girl, or more commonly known as the Utz Girl. She has appeared on Utz snack food packages and/or in the company logo since the 1920s. During the early years, she was drawn from a realistic perspective as a young, dark-haired girl with a bow, bob hairstyle, and blushing cheeks, and shown reaching into a bag of potato chips. In 1961, the Little Utz Girl was redesigned by the Baltimore advertising agency Torrieri-Myers Advertising. At that time the icon's head became a circle and was inspired by the National Bohemian Beer logo that today is known as "The Natty Bo Guy."Howard E. Cohen, b.1935 Later iterations of the Utz logo portrayed the "U" in the Utz wordmark doubling as the potato chip bag she reached into. Designers also altered the color of the logo to match the flavor of potato chips or variety of snacks it represented, with the Utz Girl's hair being one color and her bow, blush, and shirt being another color.


In popular culture

Utz potato chips were featured in season two of ''
Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American historical drama, period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on cable network AMC (TV channel), AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, with seven seasons ...
'' when the character, comedian Jimmy Barrett, was hired as a spokesperson for a fictional marketing campaign. Utz products, especially potato chips, were featured in the background scenery of many episodes of the American TV show ''
The Office ''The Office'' is the title of several mockumentary sitcoms based on a British series originally created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant as '' The Office'' in 2001. The original series also starred Gervais as manager and primary charac ...
'', set in the US city of
Scranton, Pennsylvania Scranton is a city in and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Scranton is the most populous city in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the ...
. Utz products are seen in the background of a local interview at the beginning of the 1999 film ''
The Blair Witch Project ''The Blair Witch Project'' is a 1999 American psychological horror film written, directed, and edited by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez. One of the most successful independent films of all time, it is a " found footage" pseudo-docume ...
''.


See also

*
List of food companies This is a list of food companies, current and past businesses involved in food production or processing. Africa * All Joy Foods * Bakers (bakery), Bakers * BOS Ice Tea * Cevital * Choppies * Clover Industries, Clover * Colcom Foods * Distel ...


References


External links

* {{authority control * Hanover, Pennsylvania Snack food manufacturers of the United States Companies based in York County, Pennsylvania Snack food manufacturers of Pennsylvania Cuisine of Baltimore American companies established in 1921 Food and drink companies established in 1921 Brand name potato chips and crisps 1921 establishments in Pennsylvania Special-purpose acquisition companies Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange 2020 initial public offerings