Gerber Products Company

Gerber Products Company

Company type	Division
Industry	Baby food, infant care products
Founded	1927 in Fremont, Michigan, United States
Founder	Daniel Frank Gerber
Headquarters	Fremont, Michigan , United States
Area served	Worldwide (80 countries)
Key people	Kurt Schmidt (CEO of Nestlé Nutrition North America)
Products	Baby food, breastfeeding pumps, infant bottles and nipples, dental cleansers, vitamin supplements
Parent	Nestlé

Gerber Products Company is a U.S.-based supplier specializing in baby food and infant care products, with its headquarters located in Fremont, Michigan. Gerber operates as a division under the umbrella of Nestlé.

The company's offerings encompass baby food, breastfeeding pumps, infant bottles and nipples, along with healthcare items such as dental cleansers for teeth and gums, and vitamin supplements.

Origins and Growth

Established in 1927 by Daniel Frank Gerber, who owned the Fremont Canning Company, the enterprise ventured into baby food production after his wife Dorothy began preparing hand-strained meals for their daughter Sally. Spotting commercial potential, Gerber introduced five baby food products by 1928, including options like beef vegetable soup and pureed vegetables. Within half a year, Gerber’s baby food was available nationwide.

Dorothy Gerber’s initial homemade recipes served as the foundation for the product line, with the goal of mechanizing baby food manufacturing to simplify mothers’ responsibilities. The brand evolved into a leading entity in the infant nutrition market, offering more than 190 items across 80 countries and packaging labeled in 16 different languages. Its primary competitors include Beech-Nut and Del Monte Foods. As of 2017, Gerber controlled 61% of the U.S. baby food market share.

Expansion of Product Lines

Starting in 1960, Gerber introduced baby food packaged in glass jars, which consumers frequently reused for household purposes. The company later broadened its assortment to feature pacifiers, infant bottles, and small playthings. In 2003, it transitioned some vegetable and fruit products from glass jars to plastic containers, though certain fruits and meats continued to be sold in jars.

Gerber established Gerber Life Insurance Company in 1967 to serve young families. Presently, it ranks among the largest direct-to-consumer life insurance providers in the United States, managing over two million policies with assets totaling $650 million. Its term and whole life insurance plans are available throughout the U.S., Puerto Rico, and most Canadian provinces. Gerber Life has earned an "A" ("Excellent") rating from AM Best. The company was acquired by Western & Southern Financial Group in 2018, which maintains licensing rights for the Gerber brand.

During the early 1990s, Gerber briefly tested a sugar-free vanilla custard targeted at diabetics but discontinued it due to insufficient demand. Additionally, the company expanded into juice beverages and launched a line of baby skincare products in 1999.

Corporate Integration

In 1994, Gerber merged with Sandoz Laboratories, which subsequently combined with CIBA-Geigy in 1996 to create pharmaceutical conglomerate Novartis. Novartis sold Gerber to Nestlé in 2007 for $5.5 billion, incorporating it into Nestlé’s worldwide baby food portfolio.

Customer Engagement

Since its inception, Gerber has cultivated a family-oriented brand identity. In 1938, ten-year-old Sally Gerber personally handled customer correspondence—a responsibility she upheld later as senior vice president. In 1986, the company launched the Gerber Parents' Resource Center, a toll-free hotline providing information on baby nutrition and parenting topics, underscoring its dedication to consumer interaction.

Gerber Baby

According to Gerber, the well-known Gerber Baby featured on all of the company's packaging is Ann Turner Cook. Cook later pursued careers as a teacher and a writer of mystery novels. The original charcoal drawing was created by her neighbor, Dorothy Hope Smith, who entered it into Gerber's logo contest. The baby's straightforward and innocent expression was deliberately chosen as a marketing strategy to appeal to mothers, creating an emotional bond that implied feeding their children Gerber products would help produce happy, healthy infants.

Tax incentives and growth

In September 2008, Gerber's facilities in Fremont were classified as part of a Michigan Agricultural Renaissance Zone, resulting in $43 million in tax incentives spread over 15 years. In return, Gerber pledged to preserve 1,100 jobs and invest $50 million in the Fremont area within a decade. To qualify for the entire tax benefit, the company agreed to increase its workforce by 200 employees and raise total investments to $75 million during the incentive period. Although local governments experienced revenue reductions—$300,000 annually for Fremont (equivalent to 10% of its budget) and $160,000 for Newaygo County—these tax breaks are designed to encourage business expansion and retention.

The Fremont Public School District gains indirect advantages through state funding formulas, while the Fremont Area Community Foundation works alongside local authorities on projects financed through these arrangements. Kurt Schmidt, CEO of Nestlé Nutrition North America, emphasized that the Fremont research and development facility is one of 23 Nestlé product technology centers worldwide dedicated to infant nutrition science. This commitment aims to establish Newaygo County as a global hub for scientific innovation in the baby food sector.

See also

• Gerber Singles