- Annie's is real, authentic, and trusted by
consumers. As a company we strive to build upon this legacy with every
decision we make.
- Annie's only makes products that taste great; they
delight our consumers.
- Annie's uses only simple natural and organic
ingredients, no icky additives or pesky preservatives.
- Annie's sources
only from places and people we trust, with high emphasis on quality, as
well as agricultural and environmental sustainability. We believe in
transparency.
- Annie's is a socially responsible company, and through
our actions and programs we spread awareness and act as a positive role
model for consumers and other business to do the same.
- Annie's and its
valued employees treat consumers, customers, suppliers, shareholders,
and each other, with the same high degree of respect, fairness, &
honesty that we expect of others.
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Annie and Peter at the Farmhouse in Vermont |
Living in New York’s SoHo neighborhood in 1983, fresh from culinary school and equipped with expertise in traditional French cooking methods, Annie Christopher became fascinated with the blossoming American food movement that eventually changed the canvas of American cuisine. “Ethnic ingredients were used and were purchased locally when possible,” says Annie. “Sauces were light; flavors were ingenious, and this food movement had a tremendous effect on me.”
She began by opening a summer BBQ stand in the Green Mountains of Vermont, and in the tradition of all good BBQ shack owners, she created her own homemade barbecue sauces (Original Recipe & Smokey Maple) to slather on the chicken and ribs she cooked up over maple firewood each day. After all, when it came to domestic food, what could be more “American” than, say, barbecue?
Before long, regulars at the stand were clamoring for Annie’s BBQ sauces, so in addition to cooking up ribs, she also started bottling and selling her sauces. Soon after, she and husband Peter Backman began planning a family. She eventually shifted her full-time focus to bottling and selling her sauces so that she could combine her culinary interests with being a stay-at-home mom. She started by making the sauces on her stovetop, bottling them and labeling the jars out of their home until the volume of requests overwhelmed the equipment. “We eventually rented the local co-operative cannery where we made and bottled the sauces with the help of our friends and family.” From the back of her Nissan pick-up truck, Annie sold her BBQ to local stores and specialty food shops and by 1984, her sauces attracted a local following. This was the year Annie’s Naturals officially launched.
Her test kitchen, housed in part of the original BBQ shack she operated in the early 1980’s, remains to this day the place where Annie creates her innovative and unique salad dressings and condiments. As the company’s primary product developer, Annie has a reputation as a trendsetting culinary and natural foods pioneer for the innovative flavors and ingredient combinations she creates. She has always used real ingredients such as raspberry concentrate from Oregon vs. raspberry flavor, and ethnic ingredients such as tahini, shiitake mushrooms and ginger, creating a line of salad dressings that mirrored the natural food movement standards and distinct cuisine in development.
In addition to her Raspberry Vinaigrette—the first of its kind on the market—and her Shiitake & Sesame Vinaigrette, there been many unique dressings over the years —Artichoke Parmesan, Cilantro & Lime, Woodstock, Papaya Poppy seed, and most recently Organic Goddess and Organic Maple Ginger.
Today, Annie and Peter still live in the Green Mountains of Vermont, in the seventh-generation family farmhouse where it all began 22 years ago. Annie’s Naturals has certainly grown since those early days, yet with all the changes over the years, the heart of the company remains the same. “I’m still creating dressings, marinades, sauces, and condiments the way I’ve always created them,” says Annie. “With an eye to the highest-quality ingredients and a commitment to delicious, lively flavors that are naturally good for you.” Annie’s Naturals products have grown to become a leading brand in natural foods.
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