The Franklin Baker Story
It all started when a flour miller received coconuts as payment from a customer. Today, Franklin Baker has grown into a global leader, delivering premium coconut ingredients to food and beverage manufacturers worldwide for over 130 years.
Franklin Baker Sr., a flour miller in Philadelphia, was paid in coconuts instead of cash. Struggling to find buyers, he turned them into ready-to-use desiccated coconut for baking and named it Baker’s Shredded Coconut.
Mr. Baker pioneers a small desiccated coconut processing plant in his hometown of Philadelphia, marking the beginning of a new venture.
Later, he and his son, Franklin Jr., establish the family’s first coconut manufacturing plant in Brooklyn, New York.
After visiting the Philippines in 1921, father and son founded the Philippine Food Company and opened its first desiccated coconut factory in Sta. Mesa, Manila in 1922. By 1926, the facility moved to San Pablo, Laguna and was renamed Franklin Baker Company of the Philippines. In 1927, Postum Cereal Company, later known as General Foods Corporation, acquired Franklin Baker
General Foods recognizes Franklin Baker's pioneering role in expanding the coconut market among American homemakers and professional bakers. This growing demand elevates the coconut industry, driving San Pablo’s taxable wealth to rival that of Cebu and Iloilo in the Visayas.
As WWII escalates, the San Pablo plant is bombed by Japanese forces in 1941, forcing its closure. Manufacturing operations are moved to the United States to maintain continuity. Despite the detainment of the company’s President and General Manager from 1941 to 1945, the San Pablo plant is rebuilt and resumes operations in 1947.
As global business recovers, Franklin Baker ramps up production to meet the surging demand for coconut products.
In 1968, Franklin Baker opened its second production facility, the first outside Luzon, in Coronon, Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur.
Collaborating with local farmers creates new opportunities to boost production, while community outreach initiatives strengthen relationships with the farming community.
Philip Morris acquires General Foods USA and Kraft Foods in 1985 and 1988 respectively, folding in the desiccated coconut business to be known as the Franklin Baker Division, which later became part of Kraft Food Ingredients Corporation.
In 1994, the San Pablo plant became the world’s first desiccated coconut manufacturing facility to earn ISO 9002:1987 certification.
Andorra Investments Corporation (formerly Andorra Ventures Corporation) acquired Franklin Baker from Kraft in 2006, outbidding other companies as Kraft shifted focus to its core business.
Franklin Baker opened its first water processing facility at the San Pablo plant in 2011. Four years later, in 2015, its third manufacturing plant and first PEZA-registered facility opened in Darong, Santa Cruz, Davao del Sur, expanding the product portfolio to include coconut water, virgin coconut oil, and coconut flour. That same year, the company also earned CERES and Fair Trade USA certifications.
With a strong focus on sustainability, Franklin Baker continues its mission to support the coconut industry and its farmers, while building on its rich heritage and commitment to its legacy of quality.
