"My father always said that in order to be successful, you have to surround yourself with good people and treat them like family, and we've lived up to that philosophy," says Larry Gentine, president of the food service division and second son of Leonard. "Our employees are an extension of our family and they share our passion for cheese and our love for succeeding as an industry leader. We consider our employees to be our greatest assets and offer them as many opportunities as possible to grow and prosper."

In the United States, there are about 18 million family-owned businesses, and less than one-third survive to the second generation. Out of those, only 50% extend family ownership to a third generation. Sargento has numerous second- and third-generation family members involved in the company.

Because family businesses typically prescribe and adhere to a long-term plan with steady leadership, they tend to be more committed to consumers over the long haul, according to Dean Fowler, a certified management consultant and family business advisor.

"Both in times of economic success and decline, family-owned businesses survive," says Fowler. "This is important to employees because you can attract and keep good people who remain committed and loyal. They know they will be treated with integrity."

Innovators in many ways

Indeed, in 1958, Sargento became the first company to package shredded natural cheese, providing value and offering busy families a form of convenience. Sargento was also the first to introduce natural sliced cheeses and to market blends of shredded cheese, as well as crumbled blue cheese.

"Remember, in 1953, the pizza market was nothing like it is today," he says. "Our foodservice shreds helped many pizzerias enter this burgeoning market. On the retail side, our shreds encouraged moms to make their own pizza or to quickly assemble a lasagna." In 1965, the Gentine family purchased Sartori's stock in the company, making Sargento a wholly owned family company.

Four years later, Sargento changed forever the way packaged cheese is sold at retail. The company introduced dairy case peg bar merchandising, which displays packaged cheese at eye level, within easy reach of the consumer. In 1986, Sargento introduced the first zippered, resealable package for shredded cheese and in 2000, took it a step further with the launch of the award-winning Slide-RiteR Advanced Closure System with a protective top-seal on its shredded and cubed cheese packaging. Today, consumers expect their shredded cheese packages to offer a resealable feature thanks to Sargento.

So what can the industry expect Sargento to get involved with in the near future?

"There's definitely a great deal of interest in the Hispanic cheese category, as well as organic. And as the population ages, there is also a need for stronger flavored cheeses," he says. "Fortunately for the cheese industry, there are strong health and nutrition messages surrounding cheese, and these will prove to be very beneficial."

Sargento contracts cheesemakers to produce all of its natural cheeses and has them follow strict cheesemaking practices in order to meet set specifications. The company further processes natural cheese into a range of processed cheese products including cheese sauces and snack foods, as well as industrial ingredients.

Sargento Foods - A Glimpse Back in Time