Who Owns Now Foods (The Truth!)

Do you know who owns Now Foods? this is one of the questions our readers ask a lot. Well, we´ve got you covered.

Now Foods is a very popular brand in the natural health industry, offering a wide array of products ranging from natural foods and sports nutrition to personal care products and dietary supplements.

But of course, the people who are so focused on natural health tend to desire concrete knowledge about the companies offering such things to them.

After all, to really be sure that a company is trustworthy, you have to know who is in charge and whether or not they can be trusted.

So, who owns Now Foods? Officially, Now Foods is still owned by the Richard family, which founded the company in 1968. But naturally, it’s a little more complicated than that.

Ownership Versus Leadership

Just because you own something doesn’t mean you are actually calling the shots on a day-to-day basis, especially when it comes to business.

Usually, the Chief Executive Officer of a company is not the person who actually owns the company. Such is the case for Now Foods.

Now Foods was founded in 1968 by Elwood Richard, who proceeded to be the company president for more than thirty years.

He passed away in 2017, but ownership of his company remains in the hands of the Richard family. That said, the CEO of Now Foods is not a member of the Richard family, but rather Jim Emme.

So, in a manner of speaking, CEO Jim Emme is in charge of Now Foods and many of the decisions they make as a company, though he is trusted to act in the best interests of the company’s owners, those being the Richard family.

It’s unclear if any particular member of the Richard family owns Now Foods, or if ownership is shared among many family members, as the official Now Foods website does not specify any individual, and there’s no information out there on the net to fill that gap in knowledge. 

However, there is evidence that the Richard family is still personally involved in some aspects of running Now Foods, seeing as how the Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing is Dan Richard, son of the founder. 

So, in short, the company’s day-to-day management is in the hands of CEO Jim Emme, but the company itself is still owned by the Richard family.

CEO Jim Emme

A member of Now Foods management since 1995, Jim Emme is an individual with decades’ worth of experience in food manufacturing and distribution, as well as food science.

Originally a farm boy from Indiana, Now Foods asserts that he truly understands the value of real work and natural, healthy food.

There seems to be no evidence to the contrary.

Is Now Foods Owned By A Larger Company?

It’s pretty common in today’s economy: a lot of brands are actually owned by some larger conglomerate that the average customer doesn’t know about.

However, you don’t have to worry about this with Now Foods, as they are that large conglomerate. There is no bigger company pulling the strings behind Now Foods unless you want to count the USDA or FDA.

At the very least, you can use that information to know that Now Foods is a company that answers only to itself and thus can be held responsible for its own decisions.

Said decisions are at least solely made by the people in charge of the company.

Where is Now Foods Located?

The headquarters of a company doesn’t have a whole lot to do with who owns it or why, but there is something to be gleaned from where a company is headquartered.

Now Foods is headquartered in Bloomingdale, Illinois, though it has many facilities across the country.

Does Now Foods Stick to Their Environmental Sustainability Ethics?

One of the main draws for people in shopping at Now Foods is their offerings of natural foods and products, made in an environmentally conscious manner. But does this company really stick to their guns?

Well, as best as anyone can tell, they most certainly do. They go to great lengths to sustainably source the ingredients they use in all of their products.

They look for fair-trade certified suppliers, providers that minimally impact the environment, and much more. Naturally, they rely on non-GMO ingredients in all of their products.

They also have hundreds of USDA-certified organic items and use recyclable materials for almost all of their packaging.

So, it seems that the people who own Now Foods are in fact committed to doing what the company claims is important: providing natural, healthy products in an environmentally sustainable manner.

What Does This All Mean?

We’re not going to pretend that companies and corporations are ever 100% righteous, but as far as public knowledge is concerned, Now Foods appears to be a straightforward, honest, family-owned company that does its best to stick to the ideals they claim to champion.

The person calling the shots for most of its affairs may not be a member of the Richard family, but the Richard family does still own the company and they clearly trust the person they have chosen to be their CEO, Jim Emme.

Now Foods is also not owned by any bigger corporation that would pull their strings.

Thus far, they haven’t done anything to call their integrity into question as a company, which is probably pretty good for a natural food and supplement company that health-conscious people would be using. 

References

https://www.nowfoods.com/now/about-now/people