General Foods
Corporate brand
UnclaimedFormer American food company that assembled a large portfolio of packaged-food brands before becoming part of Kraft Foods.
Last updated August 21, 2026
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Overview
General Foods was a major American packaged-food company whose corporate lineage began with the Postum Cereal Company, founded by C. W. Post in Battle Creek, Michigan, in 1895. Although the General Foods name was adopted in 1929, the business developed from Post's cereal and cereal-beverage operations and from a succession of acquisitions made under the leadership of his daughter, Marjorie Merriweather Post. The company became an important consolidator in the American food industry, bringing coffee, breakfast cereals, gelatin desserts, chocolate, sauces, frozen foods, drink mixes, meat products, baked goods, and restaurant operations under one corporate roof. Its expansion was driven in part by the purchase of established consumer brands. Jell-O joined the company in 1925, followed by Walter Baker and Hellmann's in 1927 and Maxwell House in 1928. The 1929 acquisition of a controlling interest in General Seafood Corporation, Clarence Birdseye's frozen-food enterprise, was especially significant. The transaction led Postum to adopt the General Foods name and helped establish a commercial platform for frozen foods. General Foods supported the development of specialized retail freezer cabinets, an important infrastructure investment because frozen products required stores to maintain low temperatures at the point of sale. This helped make frozen food more practical for American households and retailers. The company continued expanding after the name change. It acquired Kool-Aid maker Perkins Products in 1953, Burger Chef in 1968, Oscar Mayer in 1981, Entenmann's in 1982, and Oroweat in 1984. Burger Chef was later sold in 1981 to Imasco, the owner of Hardee's, while other brands remained part of General Foods or its successor businesses. The portfolio gave the company reach across grocery aisles and, through Burger Chef, the fast-food sector. Its products were marketed primarily as familiar, convenient, mass-market foods for household consumption. In 1985, Philip Morris Companies acquired General Foods in a major corporate takeover. Philip Morris subsequently acquired Kraft Foods Inc. and combined the two food businesses. The General Foods and Kraft operations were brought together as Kraft General Foods in 1990. In 1995, the corporate name reverted to Kraft Foods, effectively ending General Foods as a standalone corporate identity, although the General Foods International name continued on a line of caffeinated hot beverage mixes until 2010. Later transactions involving the former portfolio included the separation of Post cereal operations from Kraft and the broader 2012 division of Kraft Foods into grocery and snack-food businesses. As a result, General Foods no longer operates as an independent company, but many brands associated with its historical portfolio continued under successor owners.
History
General Foods traces its origins to the Postum Cereal Company, established by C. W. Post in Battle Creek, Michigan, in 1895. Post's first major product was Postum, a wheat-and-molasses cereal beverage promoted as an alternative to coffee. Grape-Nuts followed in 1897, and the company later introduced Elijah's Manna, renamed Post Toasties in 1908. The business grew from a cereal producer into a broader packaged-food enterprise. C. W. Post died in 1914, and his daughter Marjorie Merriweather Post assumed control of the company. Under her influence, Postum pursued an acquisition-led expansion strategy. Jell-O was acquired in 1925, followed by Walter Baker and Hellmann's in 1927 and Maxwell House in 1928. These transactions broadened the business beyond cereals into desserts, chocolate, sauces, and coffee. The pivotal transaction came in 1929, when Postum acquired a controlling interest in General Seafood Corporation, the frozen-food company associated with Clarence Birdseye. Postum subsequently changed its name to General Foods Corporation. Birdseye's quick-freezing methods made it possible to preserve food while retaining quality, but frozen products also required retailers to maintain suitable freezer equipment. General Foods therefore supported the development of commercial freezer cabinets, helping create the retail conditions needed for frozen foods to become a mainstream category. The company also published the General Foods Cook Book in the 1930s as a consolidated presentation of its household brands and recipes. General Foods expanded across food categories during the postwar era. In 1953 it acquired Perkins Products, maker of Kool-Aid. It entered the restaurant business through the acquisition of Burger Chef in 1968, although that business was later sold to Imasco in 1981. General Foods also acquired Oscar Mayer in 1981, Entenmann's in 1982, and Oroweat in 1984. These additions strengthened its presence in processed meats, baked goods, and branded bread products while reinforcing its position as a broad consumer-food supplier. Philip Morris Companies acquired General Foods in 1985. Philip Morris later acquired Kraft Foods Inc. and combined the two food businesses, producing Kraft General Foods in 1990. The General Foods corporate name disappeared in 1995 when the company reverted to Kraft Foods. Some historical associations survived through individual brands and through General Foods International, a line of hot beverage mixes that retained the name until 2010. The later history of the former portfolio was shaped by corporate separation and restructuring. Post cereals were ultimately separated from Kraft and combined with Ralcorp's cereal operations in 2008 to form Post Foods, LLC. In 2012, Kraft Foods was divided into a grocery business retaining the Kraft Foods name and a snack-food company that became Mondelez International. The successor ownership of individual General Foods brands has therefore varied, but General Foods itself remains a defunct corporate brand.
- 2010
General Foods International branding ends
[1]The General Foods International name ceases to be used on the relevant hot beverage mix line.
- 2008
Post Foods is formed
[1]Post cereals are separated from Kraft and combined with Ralcorp Holdings' cereal business.
- 1995
The General Foods corporate name is retired
[1]The combined company restores the Kraft Foods name.
- 1990
Kraft General Foods is created
[1]Philip Morris combines General Foods with Kraft Foods into Kraft General Foods.
- 1985
Philip Morris acquires General Foods
[1]General Foods becomes part of Philip Morris Companies after a large-scale acquisition.
- 1981
Oscar Mayer is acquired and Burger Chef is sold
[1]General Foods acquires Oscar Mayer while selling Burger Chef to Imasco, owner of Hardee's.
- 1953
Kool-Aid maker is acquired
[1]General Foods acquires Perkins Products, adding Kool-Aid drink mixes to its portfolio.
- 1934
Retail freezer cabinets support frozen-food expansion
[1]Equipment developed for stores helps retailers display and sell frozen products on a wider scale.
- 1929
General Foods Corporation is formed
[1]Following the acquisition of a controlling interest in General Seafood Corporation, Postum changes its name to General Foods Corporation.
- 1928
Maxwell House is acquired
[1]The acquisition brings a major coffee business into the Postum portfolio.
Products and positioning
Mass-market packaged food company built around widely distributed household brands, convenience, product variety, and large-scale grocery retail.
Breakfast cereals · 1897
Post cereals
The cereal business is the original foundation of the company's corporate lineage. Products associated with the Post portfolio included Grape-Nuts, introduced in 1897, and Post Toasties, the later name for Elijah's Manna. Post cereals remained one of the most enduring assets linked to General Foods and were eventually separated from Kraft into Post Foods, LLC.
Coffee
Maxwell House
Maxwell House was acquired in 1928 and became one of General Foods' principal coffee businesses. Its inclusion strengthened the company's position in everyday grocery staples and gave General Foods a major beverage brand alongside its cereal, dessert, and frozen-food operations.
Gelatin desserts · 1925
Jell-O
Jell-O joined the Postum portfolio in 1925. The brand represented General Foods' move beyond cereal into convenient, shelf-stable dessert products and became one of the company's most recognizable consumer names.
Frozen foods · 1929
Birds Eye frozen foods
The frozen-food operations acquired through General Seafood Corporation connected General Foods with Clarence Birdseye's quick-freezing technology. General Foods helped develop the retail freezer infrastructure needed to sell frozen products, making this business important not only as a product line but also as a contribution to the modernization of grocery retail.
Powdered drink mixes · 1953
Kool-Aid
Kool-Aid entered General Foods through the 1953 acquisition of Perkins Products. The powdered drink mix broadened the company's beverage presence beyond coffee and demonstrated its strategy of combining strong mass-market brands across different consumption occasions.
Processed meats · 1981
Oscar Mayer
General Foods acquired Oscar Mayer in 1981, adding a major processed-meat business to its portfolio. The transaction expanded General Foods into refrigerated and prepared foods and increased its exposure to branded household meal products.
Hot beverage mixes
General Foods International
General Foods International was a line of caffeinated hot beverage mixes that retained the General Foods name after the corporate identity had been absorbed into Kraft. The naming continued until 2010, making it one of the last prominent uses of the General Foods name.
Controversies
1910
Grape-Nuts advertising and libel dispute
Advertising claims associated with Grape-Nuts were criticized after an article questioned the product's purported ability to cure appendicitis. C. W. Post responded with advertisements attacking the article's author, leading to a libel case and an initial fine that was later overturned on appeal. The episode preceded the General Foods corporate name but concerns the company's direct predecessor.
Brand decisions
1995
Restore the Kraft Foods corporate nameStrategyBackground
The combined Kraft General Foods organization was reorganized several years after the General Foods and Kraft businesses were brought together.
Action taken
The company reverted to the Kraft Foods name.
Aftermath
General Foods ceased to function as the principal corporate brand, although the name survived temporarily on General Foods International beverage mixes.
1990
Combine General Foods with KraftM&ABackground
Philip Morris owned both General Foods and Kraft Foods after acquiring Kraft.
Action taken
The two food companies were combined as Kraft General Foods.
Aftermath
General Foods continued as part of a larger combined food operation, and its corporate name was later removed in the 1995 reorganization.
1985
Sell General Foods to Philip MorrisM&ABackground
General Foods had become a large, diversified branded-food company with businesses spanning grocery, frozen foods, beverages, and meat products.
Action taken
Philip Morris Companies acquired General Foods.
Aftermath
General Foods lost its independence and was later combined with Kraft Foods under the Kraft General Foods structure.
Acquisition value. Approximately US$5.6 billion (1985 acquisition)
1929
Acquire General Seafood Corporation and adopt the General Foods nameM&ABackground
Postum sought to expand beyond cereal and entered the emerging commercial frozen-food sector through Clarence Birdseye's General Seafood Corporation.
Action taken
Postum acquired a controlling interest in General Seafood Corporation and changed its corporate name to General Foods Corporation.
Aftermath
The transaction established General Foods as a diversified food company and supported the development of frozen-food retail infrastructure.
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