McKee Foods
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| McKee Foods Corporation | |
|---|---|
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| Type | Private |
| Founded | |
| Headquarters | Collegedale, Tennessee, USA |
| Key people | O.D. Mckee, Mike Mckee, Rusty Mckee, Angie Mckee |
| Industry | Food Processing |
| Products | Little Debbie snacks cereals granola bars |
McKee Foods Corporation is a privately held United States company headquartered in Collegedale, Tennessee.
Contents |
[edit] Brands
[edit] Little Debbie
Little Debbie products are primarily cookie- and cake-based dessert snacks. They come in dozens of varieties, the best-selling of which is the Swiss Cake Roll.[1] Little Debbie products are available in most discount, grocery, and convenience stores, both in boxes and individual wrappings.
The brand Little Debbie is better known than its parent company. In the 1960s, company founders O.D. and Ruth McKee decided to name a product after one of their grandchildren - four year old Debbie. The original image of Debbie used on packaging and advertising was based on a black and white photo. Atlanta artist Fred W. Hunt did the original color artwork based on a photo O.D. had in his pocket, of Little Debbie with a pony. In discussing what he wanted for a logo he pulled out her small photo and said, "Something like this." Minor changes were made to the logo in 1987.
The Little Debbie brand now sponsors Bill Elliott's #21 Ford Fusion in NASCAR.
[edit] Sunbelt
Sunbelt products include a variety of granola bars and cereals. The Sunbelt brand pioneered the chewy granola bar.
[edit] Trivia
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Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. |
- In the "Marge Gamer" episode of "The Simpsons", Homer listed Hezbollah ownership of Little Debbies as an example of internet conspiracies.
- Internet comedians Rhett and Link have a song on their album I'm Sorry, What Was That entitled "Little Debbie (An Ode)", in which they sing about using Little Debbie products for non-food related purposes to get them out of tough situations. (ie, "Little did I know that the cream filling doubled as Neosporin.")
- Debra McKee-Fowler (the little girl on the cartons) currently lives in Collegedale,Tennessee, with husband and former classmate, Randy Fowler.
- There is a Little Debbie factory located in the small town of Gentry, Arkansas.
- North Carolina rockabilly band Southern Culture on the Skids makes reference to Little Debbie and their product, 'Oatmeal Pies' in their 1995 song "Camel Walk". "The way you eat that Oatmeal Pie, makes me just wanna die" and "Little Debbie, Little Debbie, I'm a comin' on home baby". The band has also been known to throw various Little Debbie snack cakes into the crowd while performing.
