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Ganong Bros., Limited
Company typePrivate
IndustryConfectionery
FoundedJune 5, 1873; 151 years ago (1873-06-05)
Founders
Headquarters1 Chocolate Drive,
St. Stephen, New Brunswick
,
Canada
Key people
[1]
ProductsChocolate (including Pal-o-mine)
Number of employees
300[2] (2022)
Websiteganong.com

Ganong Bros., Limited is a Canadian chocolate and confectionery company based in St. Stephen, New Brunswick. Founded in 1873 by brothers James and Gilbert Ganong, it is the oldest company in its industry in Canada.[3][4] The family-owned company is in its fifth generation of ownership.[5] Primarily a producer of boxed chocolates and the first to introduce heart-shaped boxes,[6] it now provides many chocolates for Laura Secord stores.

History

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James H. Ganong
Gilbert Ganong
James (left) and Gilbert Ganong (right), the founders of the company

Ganong Bros. Limited was founded on June 5, 1873,[7] as G. W. Ganong, Commission Merchant, Etc.[8] James H. Ganong had convinced his brother, a teacher and aspiring physician named Gilbert Ganong, to start a grocery store with him in St. Stephen.[9][10] They advertised their opening in the Saint Croix Courier,[8] though the business began failing. They then started selling candy goods, then began manufacturing it themselves after struggling to get suppliers to do business with them.[11]

In 1884, the brothers' partnership was dissolved; Gilbert maintained this business, while James left to focus on the St. Croix Soap Manufacturing Company, a soap manufacturer based in the same town.[8]

Ganong Bros. Limited has been one of the Canadian chocolate industry's most important companies. Arthur Ganong was the first to make any sort of a wrapped chocolate bar; Ganong began selling the first chocolate bars in 1910. In 1920 they began using the brand name "Pal-o-Mine" for their chocolate bar.[citation needed]

The company also was the first to introduce a heart-shaped box of chocolates in North America. The heart-shaped boxes were originally used for presents over the Christmas season before it also succeeded around Valentine's Day.[12]

In 1911, Ganong Bros. purchased the bankrupt White Candy Company in Saint John, New Brunswick and operated a factory there until 1931. In 1988, due to the rising costs of production, a plant was built in Bangkok, Thailand, due to lower labor costs and the close proximity to raw ingredients, and equipment from the St. Stephen factory was shipped there. The majority of the products from this factory is shipped to Canada.[13] In 1990, a new factory was opened on Chocolate Drive, St. Stephen and continues to produce to this day. The old factory eventually became the Chocolate Museum.[citation needed]

In 1997, the company acquired the manufacturing and marketing license for fruit snacks under the Sunkist brand in Canada from Sunkist as well as Lipton.[14][15]

Today

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Ganong Bros. logo from 2006–2020[16]
The new Ganong factory opened in 1990, located appropriately on "Chocolate Drive"

In 2008, for the first time in its history, Ganong selected a president and CEO from outside the family. Doug Ettinger, who had been a senior executive in the food industry for 20 years, was approved by the Ganong board of directors as the top executive of Canada’s oldest candy company.[citation needed]

In 2015, the first female CEO was appointed: Bryana Ganong, part of the fifth generation of Ganongs. David Ganong maintains an advisory role on the company’s board and remains the controlling shareholder.[17]

Company heads

Chocolate Museum

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The old Ganong factory has become the Chocolate Museum, where one can learn about the history of Ganong Brothers.

Ganong's long history is showcased at its Chocolate Museum (Fr:Le Musée du Chocolat) which opened in 1999 in their old factory building in St. Stephen, New Brunswick. Exhibits describe the Ganong brothers and the company, and include hands-on and interactive displays about the process of making chocolate and candies historically and currently, and a display of historic chocolate boxes and antique candy-making equipment. Visitors can also taste chocolate samples. The building also houses the Ganong Chocolatier company store.

In conjunction with the community, the museum co-hosts the annual St. Stephen Chocolate Festival, which has been held since 1985.[18] In 2000 the town was registered as "Canada's Chocolate Town".

Products

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Product Introduced Description
Chicken Bones 1885[19] Dark chocolate surrounded by cinnamon-flavored candy
Delecto 1917 Boxed chocolates
Hillcrest "Nearly Perfect" assorted chocolates and chocolate cherries. An economy brand of chocolates
Pal-o-Mine 1920[20] A soft fudge, coconut and peanut bar covered in dark chocolate
Red Wrap Originally, a 5 lb box of assorted milk and dark chocolates. Usually available during the Christmas season.[21] Originally named "Ganong's Best" (GB),[22] the nickname "Red Wrap" (due to the red packaging) was officially adopted as the name in the 2000s (decade)
Sunkist fruit snacks 1997 Sunkist-branded fruit snacks, of which Ganong Bros. is the official licensee in Canada

Discontinued products

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Mints

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Ganong Bros.'s "double-thick" wintergreen mints were, until being discontinued in 2019,[23] manufactured by the company since around 1889.[24] They came in white and pink colours, were particularly larger than the average mint candy, and were coated with a powder.[23] Since the company used traditional "antiquated equipment," manufacturing the mints had grown to be too costly. In 2021, they were temporarily re-released for a limited time.[24][25]

Fruitland Chews

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Fruitland Chews were a line of jelly fruit snacks[26] that Ganong Bros. began manufacturing in 1989,[27] as a means of competing against the dominating Betty Crocker.[28] They used fruit purée to make them.[27] The line was merged in 1997 when Ganong Bros. acquired the rights for Sunkist in Canada.[29]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Ganong does sweet deal with Cooke". SaltWire Network. October 13, 2022. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  2. ^ "Glenn Cooke Makes 'Major' Investment In Ganong". Huddle. October 13, 2022. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  3. ^ "New Brunswick's Ganong Bros. teams up to take candy company global". Global News. The Canadian Press. October 14, 2022. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  4. ^ Matei, Adrienne (February 12, 2016). "Canada's Oldest Confectionery". NUVO. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  5. ^ Merotte, Bertrand (April 28, 2014). "Fifth-generation Ganong to lead iconic New Brunswick chocolate maker". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  6. ^ "Ganong Bros., Limited". Dun & Bradstreet.
  7. ^ Ligeti, Arik; Lorinc, Jacob (June 5, 2018). "Morning Update: Ottawa to redraft broadcasting laws; Ford sued by late brother's widow". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  8. ^ a b c Enman, Charles (December 29, 1999). "Still going Ganong: After 127 years, the Ganongs still supply chocoholics. Charles Enman tells the sweet story of the N.B. family". The Ottawa Citizen. Southam Inc. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  9. ^ Southwick, Reid (July 19, 2008). "Old money, new blood; Savvy Succession of Ganong is part of a growing trend spreading across the country". Telegraph-Journal. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  10. ^ McCallum, Margaret E. (June 2, 2008). "Gilbert White Ganong". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  11. ^ "Ganong Bros". Council of Archives New Brunswick. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  12. ^ "Ganong Chocolate Factory". April 11, 2020.
  13. ^ Candymaking in Canada, David Carr, p. 106-107, The Dundurn Group, 2003.
  14. ^ Tiffany, Susan (February 1998). "Ganong Bros.-- 125 years of sweet success". Candy Industry. 163 (2): 20–23. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  15. ^ Pacyniak, Bernard (February 2003). "Perfect timing". Candy Industry. 168 (2): 18–25. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  16. ^ "Helping Canadians celebrate their sweetest moments". Ganong Bros. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  17. ^ http://thechronicleherald.ca/Business/1068765.htmlN.B. candy company to select boss outside family for first time Archived 2012-03-28 at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ "Welcome to the Chocolate Museum". Archived from the original on September 3, 2009. Retrieved December 8, 2009.
  19. ^ Wright, Julia (December 24, 2017). "The story behind the weirdest Maritime Christmas candy". CBC News. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  20. ^ Wright, Julia (May 30, 2022). "What the heck happened to the Pal-O-Mine bar?". CBC News. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  21. ^ Hughes, Alison (December 22, 1999). "Its Christmas season year-round at Ganongs; The candy factory starts planning a year ahead for the Yuletide season when it sells more than 80 per cent of its boxed chocolates". Telegraph-Journal. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  22. ^ "Holiday lunch roundup: Days 1 through 5". Telegraph-Journal. December 24, 2016. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  23. ^ a b Ibrahim, Hadeel (March 1, 2019). "That sucks: Ganong drops classic double-thick mints". CBC News. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  24. ^ a b Green, Sari (February 24, 2021). "Ganong peppermints back by popular demand, for a limited time". Saint Croix Courier. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  25. ^ Sirois, Stephanie (February 15, 2021). "N.B. Favourite Returns In A New Form". CKNI-FM. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  26. ^ Morgan, Sandy (September 15, 1998). "Candy business growing strong". The Daily Gleaner. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  27. ^ a b Ferguson, Heather (September 10, 2010). "Ganong Bros. Limited has a rich, sweet history". Times & Transcript. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  28. ^ "Entrepreneur". National Post. December 24, 2004. p. 76. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  29. ^ Burn, Doug (May 2003). "Sweet exports soar". Food in Canada. 63 (4): 52–54. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
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