An old photograph of people piled into a car with others wearing cardboard slats with Annie's branding.

Our History

Polaroid photos of a pickup truck filled with Annie's boxes. "The Early Days" is written at the bottom of the top photo.

Annie Withey believed that it is possible to build a socially conscious and successful business.

This was her goal when she started making delicious Mac & Cheese and selling it from her car trunk when she co-founded the company back in 1989.

Follow our journey over the years.

Year 1989 - A black and white photo of Annie Withey with Bernie and 3 boxes of Mac and Cheese

The Beginning of Annie’s

Annie Withey co-founded the company to sell delicious mac and cheese.

Year 1989 - Store shelves lined with Annie's Mac and Cheese boxes.

Launched Cases for Causes

We started our first product donation program called Cases for Causes.

Year 1998 - Original packaging for Annie's Organic Shells And White Cheddar.

Mac & Cheese Goes Organic

Our beloved first product, Mac & Cheese, is also our first to go all organic.

Year 2000 - An assortment of smiling students' faces.

Started Awarding Agricultural Scholarships

We sow seeds of goodness by starting our Sustainable Agricultural Scholarship Program.

Year 2007 - An illustration of a garden plan.

Started Grants for Gardens

We believe every kid deserves a garden, so we launched our Grants for Gardens program.

Partnership with Organic Valley

We started sourcing organic dairy from Organic Valley who strongly aligns with our mission and values.

Year 2012 - The Berkeley building's container garden.

Honored with LEED Gold Certification

We moved to Berkeley and walked the talk by getting our building LEED Gold Certified.

Year 2012 - The Annie's banner lit up with purple celebration lights.

Annie’s Goes Public

We debuted on the New York Stock exchange ready to spread goodness far and wide.

Year 2014 - Both Annie's and General Mills staff standing together wearing bunny ears.

Annie’s Joined General Mills

We are committed to growing better together.

Year 2015 - An indoor garden with a sign that reads "Grow up happy".

Won the Bay Area Acterra Award

We were honored with the Acterra Business Environmental Award for demonstrating best sustainability practices.

Year 2016 - A thermostat on an office wall.

Won the Climate Disruptors Award

We received recognition for our efforts in reducing our carbon footprint.

A view of Bernie's backside with a speech bubble that says "Whew, I need a nap!"

Have questions? Ask us on Facebook or contact us.

An illustrated bunny, wearing a headband and peace symbol necklace. It is holding up two fingers in a peace sign. A speech bubble reads "Peace, Love, Bunnies".

Bernie, the rabbit of approval.

Bernie was Annie’s pet dutch rabbit when she founded Annie’s back in 1989. Her brother drew him into the Annie’s logo as a symbol of simplicity, care and goodness behind the Annie’s products and brand.