| Type | Private Company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Food Manufacturing |
| Founded | 1864 |
| Headquarters | Auckland, New Zealand |
| Products | Griffins, Eta, Nice & Natural |
| Employees | 800 |
| Parent | Pacific Equity Partners |
Griffin's Foods Limited is an Australasian owned biscuit, snack food and confectionery manufacturer operating in New Zealand. The company has sales of approximately $NZ300 million. Earnings are not disclosed as the company is privately owned by Pacific Equity Partners,[1] an Australasian private equity fund.
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The company was founded by John Griffin in Nelson, New Zealand in 1864 [2] as a flour and cocoa miller. In 1890 he expanded to incorporate using the flour and cocoa to produce biscuits and sweets. Note this is incorrect. Newspaper records show biscuits were in production by the 1880s and the confectionery arm of the business launched in 1886. By the 1890s Griffins were producing a range of candied peels and by the late 1900s drinking cocoa.
The company went public (as Griffin & Sons) to fund expansion and the replacement of a factory destroyed by fire. It expanded, making army ration biscuits during World War II [2] until in 1962 it was purchased by Nabisco.[3] In 1989 Griffin's acquired biscuit company Hudsons, taking on the copyright for the famous Hudson's icon Cookie Bear. When Nabisco was effectively broken up, Griffin's was acquired by Danone [4] in 1990. In 2006 Danone divested Griffin's to Pacific Equity Partners.[5]
Griffin's has two factories in Auckland. A Lower Hutt plant closed in 2008 with the loss of 200 jobs [6] with all production transferred to the Auckland sites. The company currently employs approximately 800 people.[2]
The company's food range comprises: