Bakery entrepreneur Charlie Lubin’s little daughter, Sara Lee, was eight years old when he decided to name his new line of cheesecakes after her. His Sara Lee company was purchased in 1956 by Consolidated Foods, where Lubin continued to serve as a senior executive for many years.

In 1985, Consolidated Foods changed its name to Sara Lee Corp., to reflect the consumer marketing orientation of the company and the high-quality, well-known branded products it marketed throughout the world.

Although the actual Sara Lee has never had a management role at the corporation, the company says she has appeared in some of its television ads for its bakery products. In her words, her father told her that the product “had to be perfect because he was naming it after me.” Today, Sara Lee is a philanthropist who spends most of her time supporting the education and advancement of women and girls in science.

In 1962, Turano Baking Co., Berwyn, Ill, was founded by Mariano Turano, who was born in Calabria, Italy. Considered one of the most successful and far-reaching bakeries in the Chicago area, Turano Baking initially opened with the idea of meeting “then-current” neighborhood demand. Soon, the little bakery grew into a vibrant, multi-plant business that today produces more than 200 stock-keeping units for national distribution. Currently, the family-owned bakery is transitioning into its third generation of management, but strives to stay true to its heritage.

During the rest of the decade, Sara Lee Corp. made acquisitions such as Bil Mar Foods, a major producer of turkey products; Champion Products, a manufacturer of professional-quality knit athleticwear; Van Nelle, a Dutch company active in coffee and tea; and Hygrade Food Products, manufacturer of hot dogs, luncheon meats, bacon and ham (including the Ball Park hot dog brand). In 1988, the corporation reached the $10 billion sales mark.

When ‘bread’ had a new meaning

In the 1960s, the country was in a great state of change. Hippies came on the scene, and racial tensions grew. There was mechanized slaughter taking place in Vietnam,  assassinations and a social uprising involving civil rights, protests, feminism, ecology and the counterculture. With all of the unease during the decade, even white bread was getting a bad rap, or least a dose of criticism as being too “processed,” and whole wheat and multigrain, homemade bread was easing its way into the counterculture.

 ABA became more focused on legislative and regulatory policy that impacted the baking industry. NCM meanwhile, expanded to Europe with another flour mill in La Coruna, Spain in 1965 and spanned the United States by 1969, with the purchase of Montana Flour Mills Co. In 1967, California Governor Ronald Reagan keynoted the Bakery Expo, where automation of production equipment and new packaging and labeling machines were featured.