Special Report
25 Successful Women-Owned Food Companies to Add to Your Grocery List
Published:
Women entrepreneurs are gaining traction in the U.S. The number of women-owned businesses increased by 114% from the early 2000s to 2019, according to Business Insider. In 2019, there were nearly 13 million businesses owned by women, which represented 42% of all companies. In addition, 50% of all businesses owned by women are minority-owned companies. (These are the cities with the most Black-owned businesses.)
In honor of Women’s History Month, 24/7 Tempo is shining a spotlight on successful women-owned businesses. The majority of women-owned businesses are in healthcare and social assistance, professional and technical services (i.e. accounting, consulting, and P.R.), and hair, nail, and pet services. Only a small percentage are in packaged food, retail or wholesale, but many of these culinary companies have become renowned brands across America.
To identify a number of women-owned food brands to add to your grocery list, 24/7 Tempo consulted lists of such enterprises on sites including Women Owned, Oprah Daily, and Taste of Home, as well as the sites of individual companies. Women-owned beverage companies, including wineries, breweries, and coffee roasteries, were not included.
Click here to learn more about 25 women-owned food brands to add to your grocery list
Some of the women-owned food companies listed (as well as many that are not mentioned here) are health-oriented and offer preservative-free, vegan, gluten-free, or lactose-free foods. Many are owned by women descended from immigrants who have incorporated their own family’s recipes and traditions into their products. A few are owned by women farmers who created their companies as a way to add value to the agricultural products they and their families were producing. (See a list of America’s most trusted food and drink brands.)
In some cases, the women included here have male partners, often family members, but are themselves the founders and principals. Only companies in the U.S. were considered. There are many more food companies owned by women around the country, but we used editorial discretion to choose a selection that represented a variety of product types. While some brands are available nationwide, others have limited distribution – but most sell their products by mail order via the links below.
Maya Kaimal
> Owner(s): Maya Kaimal
> Main product(s): Indian sauces, condiments, and meals
Inspired by the owner and namesake’s South Indian roots, this gourmet food company offers convenient simmer sauces, dals, channas, and condiments made from time-honored family recipes.
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Kendall Farms Crème Fraîche
> Owner(s): Sadie Kendall
> Main product(s): Crème fraîche
Since 1981, this family-owned company has been making high quality crème fraîche that is free of additives or stabilizers, and is heat and acid stable – meaning it will not break when boiled or blended into sauces.
Fly by Jing
> Owner(s): Jing Gao
> Main product(s): Sichuan sauces
With a line of Sichuan pantry staples inspired by the flavors of the proprietor’s hometown, Chengdu, Fly by Jing is perhaps most famous for its Sichuan chili crisp, a spicy condiment that goes well on nearly anything savory.
Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams
> Owner(s): Jeni Britton Bauer
> Main product(s): Ice cream
What started as an ice cream stall at a Columbus, Ohio, food hall and market has become an artisan scoop shop that spans 14 states. Jeni’s pints are available at fine grocery stores nationwide, and feature flavors like powdered jelly donut and brown butter almond brittle.
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Fusion Jerky
> Owner(s): KaiYen Mai
> Main product(s): Beef, pork, chicken, and turkey jerky
Fusion’s founder KaiYen Mai emerged from her family’s long-running jerky business to market her own updated version that combines globally-inspired seasonings with quality meat and poultry to create a tender snack that is bursting with flavor.
Jambalaya Girl
> Owner(s): Kristen Preau
> Main product(s): Jambalaya, gumbo, and other New Orleans specialties
After Hurricane Katrina devastated New Olreans, Kristin Preau traveled cross-country peddling jambalaya and raised over $100,000 for her hometown’s recovery. Now, her family’s recipes are used in Jambalaya Girl’s variety of rice blends, seasonings, and gumbo base.
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Milk Bar
> Owner(s): Christina Tosi
> Main product(s): Desserts and baked goods
Originally a boutique bakery under the umbrella of David Chang’s Momofuku restaurants, Milk Bar is now a chain of dessert restaurants headed by chef and sugar addict Christina Tosi. A line of Milk Bar’s cookies and ice creams are available at supermarkets nationwide.
Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co.
> Owner(s): Jill Giacomini Basch, Lynn Giacomini Stay, and Diana Giacomini Hagan
> Main product(s): Artisanal cheese
Three sisters transformed their family dairy farm into the Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Company, producing California’s only classic-style blue cheese, as well as semi-hard table cheeses, cheddar, aged gouda, and soft-ripened cheeses.
Soom Foods
> Owner(s): Amy, Shelby, and Jackie Zitelman
> Main product(s): Tahini and tahini products
Lamenting the absence of high quality tahini on U.S. shelves, the three Zitelman sisters created Soom (Hebrew for sesame seed), which offers tahini that rivals the brands found in Israel, as well as date syrups and sesame-based snacks.
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Bixby Chocolate
> Owner(s): Kate McAleer
> Main product(s): Chocolate bars, drinking chocolate, baking chocolate
Maine’s first bean-to-bar chocolate company sources cacao directly from farmers in Central America and the Caribbean, to create an array of chocolates, bonbons, and confections that can be shipped nationwide.
Teffola
> Owner(s): Claire Smith
> Main product(s): Ancient grain granola
When her family’s seventh-generation Michigan grain farm began growing the ancient grain teff, a staple of Ethiopian cuisine, Claire Smith tried adding the grain to her granola – and Teffola was born. The nutty multi-grain granola is available in retail stores in the Midwest.
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Wild Friends Foods
> Owner(s): Keeley Tillotson and Erika Welsh
> Main product(s): Nut butters
Founded by two college roommates, this company sources U.S. grown peanuts and almonds for their line of creamy nut butters and sweet nutty spreads.
Beckon Ice Cream
> Owner(s): Katy Flannery and Gwen Burlingame
> Main product(s): Lactose-free ice cream
From humble roots in Boston farmers markets to supermarkets nationwide, this lactose-free ice cream company has succeeded in providing a gourmet pint that is just as rich, creamy, and decadent as lactose-full ice cream.
Sweet Loren’s
> Owner(s): Loren Brill
> Main product(s): Gluten-free cookies and brownies
After kicking cancer in her 20s, Loren Brill set out to create a company that offers plant-based, all-natural treats. Sweet Loren’s convenient cookie dough is gluten-free, dairy-free, and non-GMO.
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Seemore’s Meats and Veggies
> Owner(s): Cara Nicoletti
> Main product(s): Meat-and-vegetable sausages
A fourth-generation butcher from Boston, Cara Nicoletti has made it her mission to encourage people to eat more sustainably by packing as many vegetables as possible into Seemore’s humanely raised chicken and pork sausages.
Wild Ophelia
> Owner(s): Katrina Markoff
> Main product(s): Chocolate bars and other chocolate products
From the founder of Chicago’s Vosges Haut-Chocolat, Wild Ophelia is a Fair Trade chocolate company with a mission of empowering young women entrepreneurs through its accelerator grant program.
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Maazah
> Owner(s): Yasmeen, Fatima, Sheilla, and Nasreen Sajady
> Main product(s): Afghan-style chutneys
After growing up devouring their mother’s “magic green sauce” on every dish, these three sisters teamed up with their mom to bring their family’s cilantro ginger chutney, in three variations, to the masses.
Mason Dixie
> Owner(s): Ayesha Abuelhiga
> Main product(s): Biscuits and scones
Founded by a first-generation American whose parents owned a small comfort food carry-out restaurant, Mason Dixie sells preservative-free frozen scones and biscuits that can be heated and served hot for that home-baked taste.
Pono Chocolate
> Owner(s): Jennifer Schettewi and Jan Allen
> Main product(s): Chocolate bars and other chocolate products
Based in Hawaii, this chocolate company makes premium bars with Hawaiian-inspired flavors like coffee and sugarcane, pineapple and toasted coconut, and dragonfruit with black lava sea salt.
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Capriole
> Owner(s): Judy Schad
> Main product(s): Goat cheese
Judy Schad began raising milking goats and making cheese in the late ’70s on a historic Indiana farm. Now her company, Capriole, carries a line of delectable goat cheeses that includes fresh chevre, soft ripened, and bloomy-rind semi-hard cheeses.
Baked by Melissa
> Owner(s): Melissa Ben-Ishay
> Main product(s): Cupcakes and macarons
After being fired from a media job, Melissa Ben-Ishay followed her real passion and started a mini cupcake company with a tie-dye logo that would become a ubiquitous part of the Manhattan landscape.
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Marcia’s Munchies
> Owner(s): Marcia Nodel
> Main product(s): Pickles
This Michigan-based company offers a line of home-style canned goods that includes award-winning bread-and-butter pickles, savory herbed cherry tomatoes, and spicy pickled asparagus.
Bonnie & Pop
> Owner(s): Mookie Deitsch and Connie Deitsch
> Main product(s): Nuts and chocolates
Owned by a mother and daughter duo, this gift company provides thoughtfully crafted tins of chocolates, seasoned nuts, and other snacks for any occasion, as well special seasonal and holiday offerings.
Sauce Goddess Gourmet
> Owner(s): Jennifer Reynolds
> Main product(s): Sauces, rubs, dip and spread mixes
Inspired by her father’s secret sauce recipe, Jennifer Reynolds started Sauce Goddess Gourmet to share her love of sauces and spice blends that are additive-free and made from fresh vegan ingredients.
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Brightland
> Owner(s): Aishwarya Iyer
> Main product(s): Olive oil and vinegar
Using olives and fruits from family-owned California farms, Brightland delivers the highest quality unadulterated oils and vinegars to promote clean, healthy diets and a connection to the land.
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