Wattie's
Encyclopedia
Wattie's or Heinz Wattie's Limited is a New Zealand
-based food
producer of frozen and packaged fruit, vegetables, sauces, baby food, cooking sauces, dressings and pet foods.
Founded in 1934 by the late Sir James Wattie, the company operated in New Zealand under the name of J. Wattie Canneries Limited (later J Wattie Foods Limited and its related companies) until the group was bought by American-based H.J. Heinz Company in 1992.
The company employs around 1,900 people, of which approximately 350 are temporary or casual. The company produces its own Wattie's products, some international brands of H.J. Heinz Company, as well as local products under brands like Craig's, Farex, Eta, Oak, Good Taste Company, Greenseas, Earth's Best, Complan, Chef and Champ.
The company has three production centres in New Zealand. Two are based in Hastings, New Zealand
, where the company was founded, and over 1,200 product lines are produced there.
In Christchurch
, on the South Island
the company has its third production plant which focuses on producing frozen and dry vegetables.
Its baby food products are broken down into five main categories: birth - 4 months, 4 - 6 months, 6 - 7 months, 8 - 9 months and 12 months or older.
Other canned food includes baked beans
, spaghetti, soup, preserved fruits such as apricots and pear
s, sauce bases, animal food, frozen meals and frozen vegetables.
Its famous Wattie's Tomato Sauce is now made in Australia
however Watties Tomato Sauce sold in cans is made in New Zealand, both products carry the label "NZ's Favourite". The television commercials throughout the 1990s used the line "You'll always be a Kiwi, if you love our Wattie's sauce".
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
-based food
Food
Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
producer of frozen and packaged fruit, vegetables, sauces, baby food, cooking sauces, dressings and pet foods.
Founded in 1934 by the late Sir James Wattie, the company operated in New Zealand under the name of J. Wattie Canneries Limited (later J Wattie Foods Limited and its related companies) until the group was bought by American-based H.J. Heinz Company in 1992.
The company employs around 1,900 people, of which approximately 350 are temporary or casual. The company produces its own Wattie's products, some international brands of H.J. Heinz Company, as well as local products under brands like Craig's, Farex, Eta, Oak, Good Taste Company, Greenseas, Earth's Best, Complan, Chef and Champ.
The company has three production centres in New Zealand. Two are based in Hastings, New Zealand
Hastings, New Zealand
The city of Hastings is a major urban settlement in the Hawke's Bay region of the North Island of New Zealand, and it is the largest settlement by population in Hawke's Bay. Hastings city is the administrative centre of the Hastings District...
, where the company was founded, and over 1,200 product lines are produced there.
In Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
, on the South Island
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
the company has its third production plant which focuses on producing frozen and dry vegetables.
Products
Wattie's has an extensive product line consisting of thousands of products.Its baby food products are broken down into five main categories: birth - 4 months, 4 - 6 months, 6 - 7 months, 8 - 9 months and 12 months or older.
Other canned food includes baked beans
Baked beans
Baked beans is a dish containing beans, sometimes baked but, despite the name, usually stewed, in a sauce. Most commercial canned baked beans are made from haricot beans, also known as navy beans – a variety of Phaseolus vulgaris – in a sauce. In Ireland and the United Kingdom, a tomato...
, spaghetti, soup, preserved fruits such as apricots and pear
Pear
The pear is any of several tree species of genus Pyrus and also the name of the pomaceous fruit of these trees. Several species of pear are valued by humans for their edible fruit, but the fruit of other species is small, hard, and astringent....
s, sauce bases, animal food, frozen meals and frozen vegetables.
Its famous Wattie's Tomato Sauce is now made in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
however Watties Tomato Sauce sold in cans is made in New Zealand, both products carry the label "NZ's Favourite". The television commercials throughout the 1990s used the line "You'll always be a Kiwi, if you love our Wattie's sauce".