Sno Pac Foods – Organic since 1943

CALEDONIA, Minn. — The Gengler family and its Sno Pac Foods Inc., founded in 1943, are pioneers in frozen organic food.

In fact, the Caledonia business says it was the world’s first grower/processor of frozen organic vegetables. Today, it also sells frozen fruit and frozen juice concentrate.

This summer, the 70-year-old company is expanding into a new addition to its offices and processing plant at 521 W. Enterprise St. The new 27,000-square-foot structure houses additional freezers and soon will house packaging operations, which are moving from another building in Caledonia. A public open house will be held when the project is completed, company President Pete Gengler said.

While the family-owned business doesn’t give out annual sales numbers, Gengler said sales have been increasing about 10 percent annually in the past few years.

“There’s a lot of competition for organic (food) that wasn’t there several years ago,” he added. But demand for organic food continues to grow, he said.

The strong work ethic of its employees is another reason why Sno Pac has continued to grow, Gengler said.

With increased production and sales, Sno Pac’s work force has continued to grow. The company has about 50 employees who work year-round, and another 10 or so who work during the busy season, which is from mid-June until the end of September.

PRODUCTS: Organic peas, corn, green beans, mixed vegetables, spinach, sweet beans, edamame, broccoli, hash browns, french fries, peas and carrots, soup mix, butternut squash, blueberries, cranberries and strawberries. The company also sells organic lemonade and orange, apple and grape juice concentrates.

MORE INFO: Call Sno Pac at 507-725-5281 or visit http://www.snopac.com.