Crowley Foods

Crowley Foods
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryFood
Founded1904 (established 1915)
Poughkeepsie, New York,
United States
FounderJ.K. Crowley
HeadquartersLynnfield, Massachusetts,
United States
Area served
Eastern United States
ProductsDairy
ParentHP Hood LLC (primary)
Balford Farms (part-owner)
Websitehttp://crowleyfoods.com

Crowley Foods (legal name Crowley Foods LLC) is an American dairy company formerly based in Binghamton, New York. It has been a subsidiary of HP Hood LLC since being purchased by the company in 2004, which is headquartered in Lynnfield, Massachusetts.[1][2] Products provided by the company include milk, half and half, cream, cottage cheese, sour cream and yogurt.[3] The original plant located on Conklin Avenue in Binghamton manufactured these dairy products until the acquisition by HP Hood, when certain Crowley Foods items began to be made at facilities elsewhere which were better equipped. Production at the plant ceased altogether in 2012, but the warehouse and distribution center continued to be used until 2014.[4][5]

A news source from Binghamton mentions that Balford Farms of Burlington, New Jersey, purchased the rights to Crowley Foods in 2014. Another source states that Balford Farms is a part-owner, having only a portion of the assets. According to the history section on the Crowley Foods website, as of 2017, it mentions that their products are still part of the HP Hood line of brands.[1] Balford Farms took over the warehouse and distribution center for Crowley Foods, located in nearby Conklin, New York, in 2014.[6] Mountain Fresh Dairy of Queens, New York, purchased the Binghamton plant in 2013, and began production at the facility in late 2016.[2] They ceased operations two years later and the building was once again vacant. It was sold to a local development company in 2022.[7][8]

History

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Crowley Foods was founded in 1904 by grocery clerk James K. "J.K." Crowley when he purchased a fledgling dairy business for $500.00 in Poughkeepsie, New York.[9] His company assets began with a horse and wagon, ice house, barn, some cans and bottles as well as a milk delivery route serving local customers.[10] In 1915, Crowley moved and expanded his business at Binghamton as the location was closer to numerous dairy farms in upstate New York.[1][11] Originally known as Crowley's Dairy Company, manufacturing and distribution of dairy products began at the facility on Conklin Avenue and would continue there for almost 100 years. A second plant opened at Newburgh, New York, in 1921. Retail outlets and other production facilities soon followed.[12] At its peak, Crowley's Dairy Company sold their products throughout much of the northeastern United States.

Crowley's Dairy Company would sponsor a set of 18 baseball cards featuring players from the Binghamton Triplets, who won the Eastern League championship in 1940.[13] The team was a minor league affiliate of the New York Yankees during that time.[10]

For many years Crowley milk cartons proclaimed their motto, "Crowley's Milk As Good as Any Better'n Some".

Crowley Foods was sold to Dutch company NV Wessanen Koninklijke Fabrieken (now Royal Wessanen) in 1983 for $16.4 million. Royal Wessanen then did a roll up of several additional regional dairy brands. National Dairy Holdings would purchase Crowley Foods and other brands in the portfolio from Royal Wessanen in 2001 for $400 million, only to be acquired by HP Hood three years later in a deal that also included Kemps of St. Paul, Minnesota.[14]

The company has competed in and won many dairy competitions over the years. In recent times, Crowley Foods broke their own record by winning five gold medals and seven silver medals in a competition of prestigious dairy foods at the 2005 Great New York State Fair in Syracuse, New York. Crowley Foods won a total of ten medals at the same event a year earlier.[15]

Acquisitions

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Crowley Foods has acquired a number of dairy companies to expand business, including:

All companies were acquired by HP Hood in 2004. The Ready Food Products brands were discontinued. Rosenberger's Dairy was sold to Balford Farms in 2014.[19]

Crowley Foods acquired a production plant from defunct Jersey Milk & Cream Company in 1954, located in LaFargeville, New York. The facility is now operated by HP Hood.[20]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Crowley Foods (About Crowley Foods), Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  2. ^ a b Pressconnects, Press & Sun Bulletin, Kosher dairy starts production at former Crowley plant by Jeff Platsky, November 30, 2016, Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  3. ^ Crowley Foods (Our Products), Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  4. ^ Alice Maggiore "HP Hood Halts Milk Production" Archived 2015-02-07 at the Wayback Machine WBNG Channel 12 Action News, (December 6, 2011)], Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  5. ^ Anna Norris "Conklin Dairy Distribution Center Staying Open" Archived 2015-02-07 at the Wayback Machine WBNG Channel 12 Action News (September 26, 2014)], Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  6. ^ "Balford Farms Buys Crowley's" Archived 2015-02-07 at the Wayback Machine, Binghamton.com (September 26, 2014), Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  7. ^ Binghamton Homepage, Crowley factory lofts housing project planned by Noah Holloway, December 30, 2022, Retrieved Sep. 2, 2023.
  8. ^ WNBF News Radio 92.1 FM, Equipment Removed From Former Binghamton Crowley Milk Plant by Bob Joseph, December 19, 2022, Retrieved Sep. 2, 2023.
  9. ^ 1920 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com, Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  10. ^ a b Old Cardboard, Featured Set: 1940 Crowley's Milk (baseball cards), Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  11. ^ "Crowley Plant in Binghamton Begins to be Sold Off" The Whale 99.1 FM, by Big Wally (March 25, 2013), Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  12. ^ "Crowley's Opens Newburgh Plant" Fulton History, Binghamton Press,(March 6, 1950) page 5, Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  13. ^ Blogspot, Bob Lemke's Blog: "Auction exposes Bianci as super-common in 1940 Crowley's Milk Binghamton team set." (October 21, 2013), Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  14. ^ "Kosher Dairy Plant to Open in Former Crowley Site" Press & Sun Bulletin by Jon Harris, Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  15. ^ "New Products Company 2005: Crowley Foods, Binghamton, N.Y." Dairy Foods (November 1, 2005), Retrieved Feb. 5, 2015.
  16. ^ Axelrod Foods (History) Archived 2015-02-07 at the Wayback Machine, Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  17. ^ "A Heluva Good Idea", Associated Press, PostStar (September 15, 2002), Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  18. ^ a b c Philly.com, "Maggios Sell Their Cheese Business The S. Phila. Producer of Ricotta And Mozzarella is Quitting After 82 Years" by Rosland Briggs (July 14, 1998), Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  19. ^ a b Anthony Salamone "Rosenberger's Dairies Sold Again" The Morning Call (October 29, 2014), Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
  20. ^ 1000 Islands Ag Tour (HP Hood LLC), Retrieved Feb. 6, 2015.
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