We think about our beginnings everyday

A recipe, a prayer and a lot of hard work. Behind every great product is a story. And the story of Litehouse Foods begins and ends with the same core values that make us one of the largest producers of refrigerated dressings and dips in the world.

As far back as 1882, the Hawkins family has been in the food business. But not until just after WWII, did Ed Hawkins, Sr. receive the inspiration that would lead to the great taste customers have come to expect from Litehouse products. Ed was a chef in Spokane, WA when his boss complained about the poor quality of the blue cheese dressing they served on salads. Ed responded to the challenge in an unorthodox manner: he prayed about it. The answer to his prayer was a blend of mayonnaise, spices, crumbled blue cheese and buttermilk. To his knowledge, his original recipe was the first creamy blue cheese dressing.

Ten years later, Ed and his wife Lorena bought a restaurant in the resort town of Hope, Idaho and called it The Litehouse Restaurant. They began serving the now famous blue cheese dressing. It wasn’t long before patrons started bringing empty jars so they could take home some of the delicious dressing.

By 1962, the Hawkins’ family scraped together enough money to purchase twelve dozen cases of 16-ounce jars. Fresh Litehouse Bleu Cheese Dressing and Thousand Island Dressing soon found a home at Roger’s Thrift in nearby Sandpoint. The early days were a constant struggle as Ed’s sons, Doug and Edward Jr., took time out of their teaching jobs to pitch in to make and sell the dressings. By the late 70’s, the business had outgrown the restaurant's kitchen. A plant in nearby Sandpoint, Idaho was acquired.

In the 1980's, Litehouse quality products and exceptional customer service had caught on. The number of flavors and packaging options for the salad dressing line was dramatically increased and a food service division was added.

The 1990’s brought the largest growth years, as Litehouse became the exclusive produce dressing in the newly created Sam’s Club produce department. Packaged salad was introduced to retail stores, and the first salad kits included dressing packed by Litehouse.

In 1997, Litehouse merged with Chadalee Farms, a manufacturing facility in Lowell, Michigan with a strong background in food service and horseradish products dating back to 1893.

The year 2001 ended with master cheesemaker Ralph Stuart joining the Litehouse team to produce our own Idaho Bleu Cheese®. This made Litehouse the one of the largest suppliers of Blue Cheese in the U.S. and revitalized the dairy industry in our rural community. Innovative uses of by-products from this industry have received recognition throughout the Pacific Northwest.

Serving our communities is one of the long-standing goals woven into the values and tradition of Litehouse Foods. We do this by providing jobs, supporting our youth and participating in community events, large and small. Litehouse is listed in the top l00 privately held companies in the U.S. by Entrepreneur magazine.

When you commit yourself to making great tasting products, it is no accident when people notice.

Litehouse Foods: Committed to the finest quality products at the best value and made by people who care!