Innovation Drives Our Success
At Hormel Foods, innovation is a guiding principle that helps us to meet our consumers’ needs.
For more than a century, Hormel Foods has satisfied appetites around the world with a variety of foods that are high in quality, value-driven and simply delicious. We are constantly innovating, growing and empowering our people to help us explore new avenues of business and new ways to satisfy the world’s tastes.
We continue to invest heavily in our brands, increase value-added offerings and make acquisitions that fit into our strategy and strengthen our position as a market leader. Building upon our heritage of innovation and quality, together we enhance our consumers’ meal experiences by making Hormel Foods’ products the favorite part of any eating occasion. That’s our vision, and you’ll see it reflected in everything we do.
Innovation in Action
Following are just a few examples of our commitment to innovation:
- The development of successful new products: we have challenged ourselves to reach $1 billion worth of product sales by the end of 2009 from products that have been introduced since 2000; we are currently ahead of schedule
- The formalization of our new product development process with a new product development team: in 2006, our “rookie of the year” was our Hormel Natural Choice line of lunchmeat and deli items - these items are preservative-free and a perfect fit for the growing demand for natural products
- One of the most active periods for acquisitions in the company’s 116-year history: in the last few years, Hormel Foods added strength across our portfolio with the addition of such market leaders as Clougherty Packing Co., Mexican Accent, Lloyd's Barbeque Co., Mark-Lynn Foods, Valley Fresh, Inc., and Burke Corporation.
"The twin pillars of success over the 116-year existence of Hormel Foods have been "Innovation" and "Quality". Innovation includes the creation of flavorful and convenient products by teams of employees, and it also includes technological innovation aimed at enhancing food safety, improving work processes and streamlining customer service, among other things. Quality refers to our focus on top-notch branded, value-added products manufactured in state-of-the-art facilities."
Jeffrey M. Ettinger
President and CEO, Chairman of the Board