Columbus Craft Meats

Columbus Craft Meats is celebrating its 100th anniversary of providing authentic, premium Italian salami and deli meats in addition to finding a permanent home with Hormel Foods Corp. “We were founded by Italian immigrants who moved to San Francisco and began by producing salami in their apartment,” Vice President of Supply Chain Cassandra Todd says. “From there, the business grew and continued to be a family-owned business until the early 2000s when it was sold to a private equity company.”

Hormel Foods’ acquisition of Columbus from Chicago-based Arbor Investments was announced in October. “What the acquisition means for Columbus is that we are now in a permanent home with a long-term owner,” Todd says. “Hormel is a great partner and cultural fit and we are excited to have been brought into the business.”

“We are pleased to add Columbus to the Hormel Foods family,” Hormel Foods President and CEO Jim Snee said. “Columbus has an outstanding reputation in the food industry and is well-positioned in the advantaged retail deli category. Columbus is capitalizing on one of the fastest-growing areas in the retail grocery store with premium, authentic products that are on-trend with today’s consumers who are looking for unique experiences, flavors and products.”

The Hayward, Calif.-based company was a strategic acquisition for Hormel, positioning it as a total deli solutions provider and enhancing its other strong deli brands such as Hormel, Jennie-O, Applegate and Di Lusso. “We offer premium Italian salami and deli meats,” Todd explains. “We only use whole muscle meats in our products and our meats are differentiated by their superior taste and their old-world artisan preparation. Columbus’ products are on-trend and resonate with millennial consumers – the product portfolio is premium positioned, better-for-you/healthy and offers products across meal occasions, including extensive snacking offerings.”