When our editorial team first visited Jackson’s about 2.5 years ago, the company was just settling into a facility in the working-class Milwaukee suburb of Muskego. Founders Megan and Scott Reamer and their team bet on the potential of the better-for-you snack producer and its line of sweet potato chips (cooked in avocado and coconut oil), opting for a facility with room to grow.

Smart move, it turns out. Since that first visit, the company has added new flavors and product lines (most recently the Super Veggie Straws, an extruded snack), and the workforce has grown from about 50 back in 2023 to 250 today. What’s more, the facility’s room to grow has all but disappeared, thanks to the company jumping to 10 total production lines (two more are slated for April installation), necessitating the construction of an additional warehouse nearby.

Whatever the company’s secret to success is, it’s paying off—the company is hitting new retail outlets, expanding its offerings in others, and gaining fans like social media influencers and American Idol host Ryan Seacrest. This enviable, impressive growth and continual innovation are among the reasons the company is Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery’s 2026 Snack Producer of the Year.

Courtesy of Jackson’s

Humble beginnings

The Reamers didn’t start whipping up tasty chips with the goal of taking over the snack world. As we shared in our Jackson’s profile in September 2023, it began as a labor of love. Their son Jackson lived with an autoimmune disorder, and his caring parents wrestled with ways to ease his daily life. That effort included working in their home kitchen to come up with foods that didn’t exacerbate his condition.

Photo by Nolan Blunck

“We were struggling to find convenient foods that met this restricted eating approach,” states Megan. “As such, we ended up making most of our food from scratch.”

As Jackson’s CEO James Marino explains, they discovered (through extensive trial and error) a high-fat, anti-inflammatory diet that prioritized clean, nutrient-dense fats made a difference. One troubling aspect of the journey: they couldn’t find snacks that fit the bill.

“Megan and Scott began making their own snacks at home in Crested Butte, CO,” Marino relates. “They started slow-cooking thinly sliced, sweet potatoes fried in better-for-you oils, like avocado oil, until they created a chip that was both delicious and aligned with their values. What began as a solution for their family quickly gained traction as friends and neighbors tried the chips and asked for more.”

That discovery led in 2013 to the founding of the startup would become Jackson’s. Another milestone: they pitched on the entrepreneurial competition show Shark Tank, winning over the judges and landing a $1.25 million deal, in 2017. Growth continued, but Marino says one of the major milestones came five years later.

“Everything changed in 2022 when we transitioned all product production from a co-manufacturer to our very own state-of-the-art facility and taking control of the manufacturing process,” he shares. “We not only perfected the sweet potato chip; we created demand for it and redefined the category.”

Courtesy of Jackson’s

Fast forward

As mentioned above, Jackson’s growth has been notable since it stepped into its new digs. 

“We have since completed three expansions and are in the middle of our fourth expansion, growing from an initial footprint of 50,000 square feet—which included our warehouse space—to approximately 130,000 square feet of high-density manufacturing space that produces our three product platforms: Sweet Potato Kettle Chips, Classic Kettle Chips, and our new Super Veggie Straws,” boasts Marino.

As of press time, Jackson’s is preparing to move into a brand-new 205,000-square-foot warehouse nearby, where all of the company’s products will be stored and shipped from. The facility is slated to house a high-speed automated variety pack line that will enable the company to tap into consumers’ increasing interest in variety by bringing on the ability to combine up to three SKUs of any Jackson’s product in a multipack format. That’s a long leap from the Reamers’ home.

“Today, Jackson’s has grown from a home kitchen operation into a national brand, expanding distribution, being innovative with flavors, and scaling production, while remaining grounded in the mission that inspired it from day one: creating better snacks because the people they loved most deserved better food,” Marino says.

Photo: Jenni Spinner

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Innovation, accolades, and expansion

When the SF&WB cover ran more than two years ago, sweet potato chips were relatively uncommon on snack shelves and sold poorly. Now, Jackson’s has proved there is a market for the products, with both online and brick-and-mortar retailers like Whole Foods, Costco, Sam’s Club, Amazon, and Sprouts offering their wares, and consumers snapping them up.

“Prior to 2023, sweet potato chips had low category performance,” Marino points out. “Jackson’s redefined the segment with superior taste, texture, and innovative flavor pairings.”

In addition to attracting consumer dollars, Jackson’s sweet potato chips have landed accolades. For example, the Sea Salt flavor landed Good Housekeeping’s Best Sweet Potato Chip two years running.

Not content to stay in the sweet potato lane, Jackson’s expanded into Kettle Chips, made with white spuds. According to Marino, the company’s in-house innovation team spent a great deal of time and effort tweaking the process and recipe to get it just right, settling on a final product only when it met exacting standards around thickness, crispness, seasoning, crunch, and craveability, guided by the principle, “If we don’t love it, it doesn’t get the Jackson’s name.”

Then, in 2025, Jackson’s entered the veggie straw category with Super Veggie Straws. Marino explains that although the veggie straw category was already well established, the Jackson’s team believed families deserved more.  “After nearly two years of development, we’re excited to share Super Veggie Straws with families everywhere.  Made with just four real food ingredients— yellow peas, brown rice, cassava, and sweet potato—and cooked avocado oil. They’re crunchy, craveable, and proof that veggie snacks don’t have to be just for kids.”

Courtesy of Jackson’s

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All this innovation and interest from BFY-minded consumers, as well as investment in optimizing and owning in-house manufacturing, has fueled the expansion, Marino says. Since August 2023, the employee roster has grown fivefold; the Muskego facility footprint nearly tripled; and the original quartet of kettle fryers (after installation of two more scheduled for April) will soon stand at 12, including seven high-capacity kettles twice the output of the original units. Staff currently process 2.1 million pounds of potatoes a week.

Notably, Jackson’s has taken its BFY brand beyond the expected natural channels. Now an international brand, it can be found in conventional grocers like Albertson’s and Kroger, mass retailers (i.e. Walmart and Target), club joints like Costco, convenience stores, food and drug, non-food impulse sections of TJ Maxx and other retailers, even on the road and in the air (Alaska Airlines, Hudson News, and hoteliers).

“We have leaned into relationships with retailers who have leaned in with us,” Marino explains. “We have the manufacturing flexibility to meet any needs of the retailer.

People and values

Jackson’s started as a family affair, with parents creating healthful snacks for their son. It remains family owned, with Megan and Scott Reamer leading the team. What’s more, Marino says, the employees are treated like family, and leadership works to take good care of its people.

Photo: Jenni Spinner

“As Jackson’s team has grown from 50 to 250 employees, we’ve proudly promoted talent from within, creating clear pathways for growth and reinforcing a culture where people can build long-term careers,” he says. “The company’s strong culture reflects deep commitment to core values—bravery, tenacity, and determination—inspired by Jackson Reamer.”

Photo: Jenni Spinner

He adds that even in the face of rapid growth, Jackson’s has kept oriented by building capacity ahead of demand, investing strategically in infrastructure, and working to ensure scalable growth without compromising product quality. He shares that the company has thrived due to focusing on a handful of core priorities:

• Staying true to its original mission. “From the beginning, the focus was on making tasty snacks with real ingredients and always cooked in avocado oil, simply because that was what our founders wanted for their family. That same philosophy continues to guide every decision today.”
• Prioritizing quality. “We start with an uncompromising point of view: better ingredients make better snacks. That’s not marketing—it’s our DNA.”
• Balancing excellence and speed. “Demand only matters if you can meet it without sacrificing quality. We invested ahead of the curve—expanding our Muskego facility and tripling capacity—so we could rise to the challenge quickly and sustainably.”
• Emphasizing people and culture. “Growth at Jackson’s is about more than production lines and square footage; it’s about growing leaders. We’ve built a culture where cross‑functional teams anticipate, problem‑solve, and execute at a high level.”
• Finding like-minded partners. “Our retail partners have been powerful advocates. These aren’t just placements; they’re relationships that champion what we stand for.”

The road ahead

While the company has grown steadily, and impressively, since its founding, Marino says Jackson’s future will bring even more expansion.

“Looking ahead, momentum remains strong,” he predicts. “We are projecting an additional 80% growth in 2026, fueled by expanding distribution and strong consumer demand. Our 2026 strategy—including multipack and variety‑pack expansion—positions us to maintain and accelerate momentum.”