Park Ridge, NJ (May 14, 2024)– Welch's^® Fruit Snacks, America’s #1 Fruit Snacks brand, is doubling down on its commitment to Whole Fruit with a groundbreaking collaboration and new hire. Today, the brand proudly announces the appointment of renowned chef and culinary icon, Gordon Ramsay, as Welch's® Fruit Snacks first-ever CFO, or Chief Fruit Officer. This strategic move underscores Welch's^® Fruit Snacks unique position as the only Real Fruit Snacks, Made with Whole Fruit as the Main Ingredient.

Unlike fruit flavored Snacks from other brands made with minimal juice and a drop of fruit concentrate- if any, Welch's^® Fruit Snacks has a 24-year long history of making premium, true Fruit Snacks which lead to their #1 selling market position. Made using Whole Fruit, meaning every edible part of the fruit — peel, skin, and pulp, as the main or primary ingredient, Welch’s^® Fruit Snacks are both superior and authentic. This is the message they set out to communicate with this new campaign. This unwavering commitment to using quality fruit ingredients is also what drew Gordon Ramsay, and his uncompromising standards of quality, to the brand.

Ramsay’s new position will play a key role in spearheading Welch’s^® Fruit Snacks Whole Fruit initiative, educating consumers about the important distinction between true Fruit Snacks and fruit flavored snacks. Pointing out how true Fruit Snacks are made with Whole Fruit, where fruit flavored snacks use minimal fruit-related ingredients such as juice and concentrate to parade around as “fruit snacks.”

"My goal as Welch’s^® Fruit Snacks’ Chief Fruit Officer is to help raise awareness about the distinction between authentic fruit snacks and mere imitations of fruit flavor. With more awareness, consumers will have the ability to make more informed choices” says Gordon Ramsay. “A father of six, I have been a long-time consumer of the brand, and on any given day, you’d find Welch's^® Fruit Snacks in my pantry at home, so this new role is truly authentic and personal for me.”

The announcement of Gordon Ramsay as Chief Fruit Officer comes with the launch of Welch's^® Fruit Snacks' largest campaign in brand history, named "Wholly Fruit," which includes the brand's first-ever television commercial, starring Ramsay, rolling out nationwide this summer. Emphasizing the brand’s commitment to high quality standards, PIM Brands, Inc. CEO himself, Michael Rosenberg, makes a voice cameo in the commercial to announce the new CFO hire. This cameo not only introduces Ramsay as Chief Fruit Officer, but also conveys how important Real, Whole Fruit is to the brand ethos. The national campaign will appear across broadcast, digital and social channels. You can view the campaign spots HERE and HERE.

“Gordon Ramsay’s culinary expertise, creativity and dedication to quality aligns perfectly with our commitment to delivering exceptional products with premium ingredients,” says Michael Rosenberg, CEO of PIM Brands Inc., maker of Welch's^® Fruit Snacks. "We take fruit snacks seriously, and that means using the Whole Fruit to make them. Our partnership with Gordon Ramsay and the launch of our 'Wholly Fruit' campaign exemplify our steadfast commitment to Whole Fruit and our mission to offer families and individuals of all ages a delicious snacking option."

Last month, Welch’s^® Fruit Snacks began to tease this new campaign with out of home billboards and wild postings featuring new creative starring the iconically shaped Welch’s^® Fruit Snacks pieces alongside an unexpected element: fruit stickers. The fruit stickers, similar to those found on real, Whole Fruit in the grocery store, served as a vehicle to amplify the brand’s “Made with Whole Fruit” message. Consumers in New York City also enjoyed an experiential component with Welch’s® Fruit Snacks vintage “Fruit Truck” popping up in the SoHo neighborhood offering free Welch’s^® Fruit Snacks to the public, along with other swag.

For more information about Welch’s^® Fruit Snacks new “Wholly Fruit” Campaign, please visit https://welchsfruitsnacks.com/wholly-fruit/.

ABOUT PIM BRANDS INC.:

PIM Brands, Inc. is the world’s largest maker of Real Fruit Snacks and related treats and is also one of the world’s largest makers of chocolate and non-chocolate confections. Currently ranked as #26 on Candy Industry Magazine’s “Global Top 100” confectionery companies in the world and #10 in North America by Candy Industry Magazine, PIM Brands, Inc. is also ranked by Crain’s Business as one of the New York Metro Area’s 100 largest privately owned companies, and by NJBIZ as one of the State’s largest privately held employers. PIM Brands, Inc. has also been named as one of the fastest-growing Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) companies in the U.S.A. by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and Information Resources, Inc. (IRI) six times in the last decade.

Millions of times each day all across the world, consumers enjoy PIM’s vast array of loved brands including Welch’s^® Fruit Snacks, Welch’s^® Juicefuls^® Juicy Fruit Snacks, Welch’s^® Fruit ‘n Yogurt™ Snacks, Welch’s^® Fruit Rolls, Welch’s^® ZERO SUGAR Fruity Bites, Sun-Maid^® Chocolate Raisins, Toggi^® Fine European Chocolate Wafers, Tuxedos^® Chocolate Almonds, Original Gummi FunMix^®, Sour Jacks^® Sour Candies, Slice ™Fruit On the-Go™ Fruit Bars, Nuclear SQWorms^® Sour Gummi Worms and many more.

PIM’s subsidiaries and affiliates include PIM Brands LLC, PIM Brands Canada, PIM Brands Mexico S DE RL DE CV, PIM Brands Iberica, SL, PIM Brands UK, Ltd, PIM Brands Hindustani Private Limited, PIM Global Holdings LLC, PIM Consumer Health LLC, Pharma In Motion LLC and Farmer’s Choice Food Brands.

About Welch’s:

Founded in 1869 and headquartered in Concord, Mass., Welch’s is an iconic and leading family-farmer owned fruit-based food and beverage company. Through the Growing Tomorrow Together sustainability practices, Welch’s is committed to improving the quality of life for our communities, employees, and family farm owners. The Welch’s brand is owned by Welch Foods Inc., A Cooperative, and is used under license.

Media Contact:

Alison Brod Marketing & Communications
pimbrands@abmc-us.com