Totino's

Totino's and Jeno's are brands of frozen pizza products owned by General Mills.

History

Rose Totino and her husband, Jim, founded a take-out pizzeria in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1951. They later expanded it to a full-service restaurant, which moved in 2007 and closed in 2011.[1] They also founded a frozen-pizza manufacturing company. The Totinos eventually sold the frozen pizza business to the Pillsbury Company, where Rose Totino was named a vice-president.[2] The Totino's brand was acquired by General Mills with its purchase of Pillsbury.

Separately, Jeno Paulucci developed a series of food businesses starting in the late 1940s, including the Chun King line of Asian-themed foods.[3] After selling Chun King in 1966, in 1968 he founded Jeno’s Inc., where he developed Pizza Rolls, a type of egg roll filled with pizza ingredients.[3] In 1985, Paulucci sold his Jeno's Pizza Rolls brand to Pillsbury for $135 million.[4]

The Jeno's line of pizza rolls was rebranded as Totino's in 1993.[5] Totino's and Jeno's products are manufactured in Wellston, Ohio. The brands produce about 1.4 million pizzas a day and sell an average of about 240 million each year. Pizza rolls are also manufactured.

Product lines

Health and nutrition issues

On November 1, 2007, Totino's and Jeno's brand pizza were recalled for E. coli contamination.[6]

Totino's products contain cheese substitutes made with hydrogenated oil.[7] Totino's products have been criticized for their high amount of trans fat[8] and sodium.[9] In 2011, Consumer Reports rated Totino's as "only fair for nutrition" because of "high total fat and trans fat and low fiber."[10] [11] By at least October 2013, packaging on Totino's brand pizza now indicates 0 trans fat per serving.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Farewell Totino's". buzz.mn. Retrieved August 28, 2011.
  2. ↑ Database (n.d.). "Rose Totino". Great American Leaders of the 20th Century (managed Harvard Business School). Retrieved October 31, 2012.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Slotnick, Daniel, E. (November 25, 2011).Jeno Paulucci, a Pioneer of Ready-Made Ethnic Foods, Dies at 93. New York Times
  4. ↑ Finkelstein, Matt (November 2007). ""The Master Chef". Inc. Retrieved October 31, 2012.
  5. ↑ "Totino's History". Totino's.
  6. ↑ Press release (November 1, 2007). "Ohio Firm Recalls Frozen Meat Pizzas Due to Possible E. Coli O157:H7 Contamination". Food Safety and Inspection Service. Retrieved October 31, 2012.
  7. ↑ Staff (June 10, 1987). "Pizza Makers Whip Dairy Lobby, Duck 'Imitation Cheese'" Ocala Star-Banner (via Google News). Retrieved October 31, 2012.
  8. ↑ Rem, Kathryn (January 18, 2012). "Investigating the Contents of Packaged Foods – Trans Fats Have Not Gone Away". GateHouse News Service (via the Journal Star). Retrieved October 31, 2012.
  9. ↑ Staff (February 13, 1986). "Processed-Food Makers Criticized on Sodium". Associated Press (via The New York Times). Retrieved October 31, 2012.
  10. ↑ Staff (January 30, 2011). "Shop Smart: Frozen Pizzas Can Satisfy Even Adults". Consumer Reports (via the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette). Retrieved October 31, 2012.
  11. ↑ Abstract. Perrin, Gail (November 30, 1988). "Frozen Pizzas May Be High in Fat". The Boston Globe. Retrieved October 31, 2012.

External links