Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
Organic history
Organic company history timeline
Spectrum Spread, a healthy alternative to butter or margarine in baking, was introduced in 1993.
1993 Sept. – Whole Foods Markets acquires Mrs.
1995: The company establishes Spectrum Commodities, Inc.
There had been three ingredients that it was forbidden to use or sell (by common unwritten consensus) in natural foods prior to about 1995; sugar (especially white sugar), meat, and highly refined products such as white bread, white rice, white flour, white sugar, etc.
1996 Sept. – Whole Foods Market acquires the privately-owned Fresh Fields chain of natural food stores (Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Chicago, New Jersey) for $134.5 million.
1997 – Whole Foods Markets’ revenue passes $1 billion per year, with 70 stores in 16 states.
The merger agreement was a change from the original plan, in which Organic Food Products was slated to acquire Spectrum's food division in May 1998.
The two companies continued discussions over the following year as Organic Food Products' stock plunged, dropping from $3.75 a share in August 1998 to 38 cents in December.
The company changed its name to Spectrum Organic Products following its merger with Spectrum Naturals in 1999.
So in 1999, the company approached Small Planet Foods, the umbrella over brands Cascadian Farm and Muir Glen.
In October 2000, Spectrum signed an exclusive agreement with Venice Maid Foods of Vineland, New Jersey, the first of many strategic alliances it planned to make to become the leading organic foods and nutritional supplements company in the industry.
By 2000, the deal was complete for a company known for tasty offerings, well developed sales, and a great distribution network among natural and organic grocers.
Also in 2001, the company announced a series of new products, including organic omega-3 mayonnaise, organic hemp oil supplements, and nutritional supplements based on omega-3 rich flaxseed oils, GLA rich borage oil, and selected Chinese herbs such as black cohosh, wild yam, and black haw bark.
Despite the introduction of new products, the company reported a net loss of $5.2 million for 2001 versus a net loss of $2 million for the prior year.
In April 2002, the company experienced an industrial accident at its Petaluma manufacturing and bottling plant when two men died after being found unconscious in a stainless steel tank filled with deadly gas.
In May 2002, Spectrum sold its Organic Ingredients division to Acirca, Inc.
On September 1, 2002, Spectrum appointed Neil G. Blomquist as its new Chief Executive Officer.
Under Blomquist's leadership, the company returned to profitability, earning a record net income for 2002 of $1.1 million compared to a net loss for the prior year of $5.2 million.
In March 2004, Spectrum provided an educational grant to support the first annual Nutrition and Health Conference.
2007 – Whole Foods Market merges with the natural food chain Wild Oats (Boulder, Colorado).
In 2008, Humm Foods, maker of LÄRABAR fruit and nut bars, joined General Mills.
2010 early – The first products bearing the Non-GMO Project Verified seal (a butterfly) on their labeling hit the marketplace.
2013 – Whole Foods Market is said to become the first chain to label all foods produced by genetic engineering.
In 2014, General Mills acquired Annie's, a leading producer of organic and natural food products.
In 2015, General Mills invested $50,000 to support the Canada-based Prairie Organic Grain Initiative, a multi-year program whose mission is to increase both the quantity and quality of organic field crops grown in Canada.
In 2016, EPIC Provisions, a premium meat snacks company, joined the team.
Rate how well Organic lives up to its initial vision.
Organic jobs
Do you work at Organic?
Is Organic's vision a big part of strategic planning?
Organic competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interbrand | 1974 | $185.4M | 1,250 | - |
| Leo Burnett | 1935 | $1.9B | 9,000 | - |
| Frost & Sullivan | 1961 | $220.0M | 1,800 | - |
| Lyft | 2012 | $5.8B | 4,369 | 294 |
| Rubicon Project | 2007 | $156.0M | 750 | - |
| Gartner | 1979 | $6.3B | 16,724 | 390 |
| YuMe by RhythmOne | 2004 | $160.4M | 505 | 1 |
| Publicis Sapient | 1990 | $1.3B | 20,000 | 2 |
| Palantir | 2003 | $2.9B | 2,000 | 376 |
| Boingo Wireless | 2001 | $237.4M | 411 | 22 |
Organic history FAQs
Zippia gives an in-depth look into the details of Organic, including salaries, political affiliations, employee data, and more, in order to inform job seekers about Organic. The employee data is based on information from people who have self-reported their past or current employments at Organic. The data on this page is also based on data sources collected from public and open data sources on the Internet and other locations, as well as proprietary data we licensed from other companies. Sources of data may include, but are not limited to, the BLS, company filings, estimates based on those filings, H1B filings, and other public and private datasets. While we have made attempts to ensure that the information displayed are correct, Zippia is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of this information. None of the information on this page has been provided or approved by Organic. The data presented on this page does not represent the view of Organic and its employees or that of Zippia.
Organic may also be known as or be related to ORGANIC INC, Organic, Organic Holdings, Inc, Organic Inc and Organic, Inc.