Johnsonville Foods
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| Industry | Food processing |
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| Founded | 1945 |
| Founder(s) | Ralph F. Stayer Alice Stayer |
| Headquarters | Johnsonville, Wisconsin, USA |
| Products | sausage, bratwurst |
| Website | www.johnsonville.com |
Johnsonville Sausage is a Wisconsin-based sausage producer, founded in 1945 by Ralph F. & Alice Stayer. Johnsonville Sausage produces various varieties of sausage including fresh bratwurst, Italian sausage, smoked-cooked links and fresh breakfast sausage links. In 2004, Johnsonville became the largest sausage company in the United States in terms of sales.
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[edit] History
Established in 1874 and named after U.S. President Andrew Johnson, Johnsonville is a small unincorporated rural community in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, located in the midst of dairy farms and cheese factories. It was popularly known as Schnappsville, and is still much the same as it was back in 1945 when Johnsonville Sausage was founded.[citation needed]
Ralph and Alice Stayer opened a butcher shop and named it after their hometown of Johnsonville, Wisconsin. The company says that the sausage made in the Stayer's shop was from an Austrian family recipe.
During the 1950s and 1960s Johnsonville sausage expanded to three retail grocery meat markets in nearby communities. The Stayer's children, Ralph C. and Launa, both became involved in sausage making and expanded the company's wholesale business.[citation needed]
Ralph C. Stayer graduated from Notre Dame, and in 1978 became president of Johnsonville and launched the company into a major expansion by shipping its products out of state. A second plant was built and in 1981, Johnsonville aired its first TV commercial featuring the popular character, "Charlie Murphey"[citation needed]. The 1980s saw a sales increase of 20 times that of the previous decade. At this point Johnsonville sausage was distributed to 47 states[citation needed].
In 1998, Johnsonville partnered with McDonald's restaurants, placing brats on their menu seasonally.[citation needed]
Today, Johnsonville sausage products are sold in 16 National Football League stadiums and in stores in 39 countries, including France, Canada, Mexico, Japan, and China. The company employs over 1,000 people.[citation needed]
[edit] Political Involvement and Controversy
The company and its owners have a reputation for political involvement, and are widely known as supporters of conservative causes. [1] In 2010, members of the Stayer family figured prominently as contributors to the successful Wisconsin gubernatorial campaign of Republican candidate Scott Walker. [2]As a result, in 2011, opponents of Walker and his policies have called for a boycott of Johnsonville products. [3]
[edit] Products
Johnsonville is a major brand of fresh dinner sausage, including bratwurst and Italian sausage, as well as smoked sausage links, breakfast sausage, and grilling sausage. Varieties include:
- Johnsonville Original Bratwurst Links
- Johnsonville Beer'n Bratwurst Links
- Johnsonville Cheddar Bratwurst Links
- Johnsonville Savory Onion Bratwurst Links
- Johnsonville Hot 'n Spicy Bratwurst
- Johnsonville Oktoberfest Bratwurst
- Johnsonville Beer Brats
- Johnsonville Cooked Brats
- Johnsonville Smoked Brats
- Johnsonville Stadium Style Brats
- Johnsonville Better with Cheddar Links
- Johnsonville New Orleans Spicy Smoked Sausage
- Johnsonville Polish Sausage
- Johnsonville Beef Bratwurst
- Johnsonville Mild Italian Sausage Links
- Johnsonville Smoked Sausage
- Johnsonville Snack Sausage and Ring Bologna: Original Summer Sausage, Beef Summer Sausage, Garlic Summer Sausage, Old World Recipe Summer Sausage, Little Smokies, and Beef Ring Bologna
- Johnsonville Original Breakfast Links
- Johnsonville Original Breakfast Patties
- Johnsonville Vermont Maple Syrup Links
- Johnsonville Vermont Maple Syrup Patties
- Johnsonville Brown Sugar & Honey Links
- Johnsonville Hickory Smoke Breakfast Sausage
- Johnsonville Chorizo
[edit] Notes
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Johnsonville Foods |
- ^ Soglin, Paul Johnsonville Sausage Reheats Hot Topic accessed March 26, 2010
- ^ Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, Campaign Finance Database accessed March 26, 2010
- ^ The case for boycotting Johnsonville Sausages and Metcalfe’s Hilldale Sentry accessed March 26, 2010
