Ore-Ida

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American frozen food brand

title: "Ore-Ida" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["heinz-brands", "food-manufacturers-of-the-united-states", "frozen-food-brands", "ontario,-oregon", "food-and-drink-companies-established-in-1952", "1952-establishments-in-oregon", "companies-based-in-pittsburgh", "food-and-drink-in-idaho"] description: "American frozen food brand" topic_path: "geography/united-states" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ore-Ida" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American frozen food brand ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox company"]

FieldValue
nameOre-Ida
logoOre ida logo.png
logo_size150
imageGrigg Tater Tots Truck.jpg
image_size220
image_captionA trailer advertising the Ore-Ida brand, showing the outlines of Oregon and Idaho, circa 1961
typeSubsidiary
parentKraft Heinz
founded
foundersRoss Erin Butler Sr.Francis Nephi GriggGolden Grigg
locationPittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
industryRetail, food
homepage
::

| name = Ore-Ida | logo = Ore ida logo.png | logo_size = 150 | logo_alt = | logo_caption = | logo_padding = | image = Grigg Tater Tots Truck.jpg | image_size = 220 | image_alt = | image_caption = A trailer advertising the Ore-Ida brand, showing the outlines of Oregon and Idaho, circa 1961 | type = Subsidiary | parent = Kraft Heinz | founded = | founders = Ross Erin Butler Sr.Francis Nephi GriggGolden Grigg | location = Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. | industry = Retail, food | homepage = |

Ore-Ida (; ) is a brand of potato-based frozen foods owned by Kraft Heinz's H.J. Heinz Company Brands LLC, which is based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Ore-Ida's primary production facility is located in Ontario, Oregon, near the Idaho border where the company was originally founded in 1949.

History

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/Nephi_Grigg_Tater_Tots_Inventor_Oreida_Founder.jpg" caption="Francis Nephi Grigg, one of the Grigg brothers who founded the "Oregon Frozen Foods Company" that evolved into Ore-Ida"] ::

In 1934, entrepreneurs Francis Nephi Grigg and Golden Grigg began growing sweet corn in eastern Oregon. Their first company, "Grigg Brothers", became the largest distributor of sweet corn in the United States. In 1949, with financial backing from their brother-in-law Otis Williams, the brothers rented a frozen food plant located in Ontario and converted it into a potato-processing facility. The three purchased the facility around 1952 after the plant went into foreclosure. The company was officially founded that year as the "Oregon Frozen Foods Company".

The company initially produced and sold frozen corn and French fries. In 1953, Nephi, Golden, Otis, and Ross developed Tater Tots, bite-sized "logs" formed from seasoned slivers of potatoes, which were leftovers from French fry production. The name “tater tots” can be attributed to Clora Lay Orton after the brothers created a contest with their friends and employees to create a name for the potato “logs". Tater Tots are today considered the brand's most well known product.

In 1960, the company built a second plant in Burley, Idaho. The company's name is a syllabic abbreviation of the first few letters of Oregon and Idaho and the original logo consisted of the outlines of Oregon and Idaho with Ore-Ida superimposed in italicized letters.

After going public in 1961, the Ore-Ida brand was acquired by the H. J. Heinz Company in 1965. The Heinz company coined Ore-Ida's long-time advertising slogan: “When it says Ore-Ida, it’s All Righta.”

McCain Foods purchased Ore-Ida's foodservice division in 1997, acquiring five of the company's plants, including the Burley location. Ore-Ida's division headquarters were located in Boise until 1999, when a new frozen foods division was created based at Heinz's corporate headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

In 2022, Boise-based J.R. Simplot Company acquired the Ontario facility; Kraft Heinz retains ownership of the Ore-Ida brand, which is now produced by Simplot under a long-term agreement.

Sports sponsorship

References

References

  1. Lukas, Paul. (November 1, 2003). "Mr. Potato Head – A Dirt-Poor Farmer Turned Spud Scraps into Gold". [[CNN Money]].
  2. "The Francis Nephi ("Neef") Grigg Papers". [[University of Utah]] Library Special Collections.
  3. [http://www.oreida.com/funzone/funfacts.aspx "Ore-Ida Fun Zone{{spaced ndashFun Facts"] ({{webarchive. link. (2006-06-22). Ore-Ida.)
  4. "How 2 Oregon brothers' efforts to mitigate food waste created the beloved tater tot". OPB.
  5. "A Brief History of Grigg Brothers". Grigg Brothers.
  6. Dick Grigg. (December 2011). "Family History and Temples Including Grigg and Related Family Genealogies". [[Xlibris Corporation]].
  7. "Company Overview of Ore-Ida Foods, Inc.". [[Bloomberg News]].
  8. McKinney, Kelsey. (2017-08-28). "The Tater Tot Is American Ingenuity at Its Finest".
  9. "The history of tater Tots - Upworthy".
  10. (August 25, 2014). "Ore-Ida Campaign Focuses on Authenticity of Tater Tots". [[The New York Times]].
  11. (June 30, 1961). "S.E.C. Registrations". [[The New York Times]].
  12. (May 21, 1965). "Heinz is Planning Food Acquisition: Directors Approve Plan for Purchase of Ore-Ida". [[The New York Times]].
  13. Evan Morris. (9 November 2004). "From Altoids to Zima: The Surprising Stories Behind 125 Famous Brand Names". [[Simon & Schuster]].
  14. (June 30, 1997). "McCain Foods Completes Ore-Ida Food Service Acquisition: New Company Has Strategic Advantages". [[PR Newswire]].
  15. (2000). "H.J. HEINZ COMPANY ANNUAL REPORT 2000". [[Heinz]].
  16. (November 11, 1998). "Heinz moves Ore-Ida from Idaho to Pittsburgh". [[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]].
  17. (February 24, 2022). "Simplot acquires eastern Oregon processing facility". Simplot.
  18. (February 24, 2022). "Simplot to become Ore-Ida’s exclusive manufacturer, supplier". Capital Press.
  19. (February 23, 2022). "Kraft Heinz and the J.R. Simplot Company announce an exclusive, multi-year strategic supply agreement for Ore-Ida". Business Wire.
  20. (July 9, 1990). "Thompson wins Ore-Ida race". Idahonian.
  21. "The toughest women's race in history: Ore Ida".
  22. (February 8, 2005). "Vickers to Drive No. 57 Ore-Ida Chevy in Busch Series". [[Hendrick Motorsports]].
  23. (October 26, 2005). "Ore-Ida Racing". [[Hendrick Motorsports]].
  24. (October 4, 2006). "Two will share ride for Wood Brothers". [[News & Record]].
  25. (October 13, 2007). "Charlotte II: Elliott - Ford Friday interview". motorsport.com.
  26. (June 11, 2007). "Little Debbie Ford Show car stopping by Q-C". [[The Dispatch / The Rock Island Argus]].
  27. (2025-03-27). "'Richie's Tater Shots': BYU's Saunders signs NIL deal with company founded by great-grandfather".
  28. Russo, Ralph D.. (2025-03-27). "BYU’s Richie Saunders, great-grandson of Ore-Ida founder, inks March Madness tater tots deal". The New York Times.

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heinz-brandsfood-manufacturers-of-the-united-statesfrozen-food-brandsontario,-oregonfood-and-drink-companies-established-in-19521952-establishments-in-oregoncompanies-based-in-pittsburghfood-and-drink-in-idaho