Jack Link's

Jack Link's is an American meat-snack brand operated by Link Snacks, Inc., commonly known as Jack Link's Protein Snacks. The company was established in 1986 by John "Jack" Link in Minong, Wisconsin. Its product heritage is associated with recipes developed by Link's great-grandfather, Chris Link, a German sausage maker. The business initially built its identity around shelf-stable meat snacks, particularly beef jerky, and later broadened its portfolio to include meat sticks, snack bars, meatballs, bacon jerky, and related protein-oriented formats. Beef jerky remains the brand's central product category. Jack Link's markets conventional and flavored varieties, including original-style and teriyaki offerings, while also selling individually portioned products designed for convenience stores, supermarkets, club stores, vending, travel, and outdoor consumption. The brand generally presents meat snacks as portable, filling, protein-focused foods rather than as conventional confectionery or baked snacks. Its positioning combines bold flavor, convenience, high-protein messaging, and an irreverent outdoor-oriented personality. The company expanded from its original Wisconsin operation into a broader North American manufacturing network, with facilities reported in Wisconsin, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Georgia, and Ontario, as well as a marketing office in Minneapolis. Its international presence grew materially through the acquisition of Unilever's meat-snack division in 2014. That transaction brought the European BiFi brand, Peperami in markets including the United Kingdom and Ireland, and a manufacturing operation in Ansbach, Germany into the company's portfolio. Jack Link's subsequently added the Golden Island brand, acquired from Tyson Foods in 2019, strengthening its position in meat snacks and premium-style jerky products. Brand building has been an important part of Jack Link's growth. The company's best-known campaign, "Messin' with Sasquatch," uses comic encounters with a fictional Sasquatch to associate the brand with wilderness, mischief, and an untamed consumer persona. The campaign became a recognizable part of the brand's identity and was extended into sports and entertainment partnerships, including a 2017 version featuring NBA player Karl-Anthony Towns. Jack Link's has also used sponsorships, packaging changes, and nutrition-focused communications to support its positioning. In 2013 it signed a sponsorship agreement with the Seattle Mariners, and in 2015 it introduced a redesigned logo intended to express its "Feed Your Wild Side" positioning. Jack Link's remains a privately held meat-snack business with operations and products spanning North America and several international markets. Alongside the eponymous Jack Link's range, its wider portfolio includes acquired brands such as BiFi, Peperami, and Golden Island. The company has also attracted scrutiny connected with the sourcing of Brazilian cattle and broader concerns about cattle production and Amazon rainforest clearing. Publicly available reference material does not establish a complete account of the company's current executive roster, ownership structure beyond its private operating entity, or current financial performance; those details are therefore omitted.

Jack Link's traces its origin to John "Jack" Link, who founded the business in 1986 in Minong, Wisconsin. The company drew on family meat-making traditions associated with Chris Link, described as a German master sausage maker and Jack Link's great-grandfather. From the beginning, the business concentrated on meat snacks that could be preserved, transported, and eaten without preparation. Beef jerky became the defining product and the basis for the Jack Link's consumer brand. The company developed beyond its original facility in Minong as demand for packaged meat snacks grew. Its reported North American manufacturing network came to include operations in New Glarus, Wisconsin; Alpena, South Dakota; Mankato, Minnesota; Laurens and Underwood, Iowa; Perry, Georgia; and Mississauga, Ontario. A marketing office was also established in Minneapolis. This geographic expansion supported distribution across the United States and Canada and helped the company serve multiple retail channels, including grocery, convenience, club, travel, and outdoor-oriented outlets. Jack Link's product development broadened the brand from traditional beef jerky to a wider group of shelf-stable meat snacks. The portfolio came to include meat sticks, bars, meatballs, and bacon jerky made from salt-and-sugar-cured pork. These formats allowed the company to address different occasions and price points while retaining a common emphasis on portability, flavor, and protein. The brand's range also developed beyond a single national identity as the company expanded through acquisitions. A major international turning point came on April 1, 2014, when Jack Link's bought Unilever's meat-snack division. The transaction included BiFi, a meat-snack brand sold across Europe, Peperami, which was marketed in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Mexico, and a manufacturing unit in Ansbach, Germany. The acquisition gave Jack Link's a stronger European platform and added established local brands to its international portfolio rather than relying only on the Jack Link's name. Marketing helped differentiate the company in a crowded snack category. The "Messin' with Sasquatch" campaign used a recurring Sasquatch character and humorous acts of provocation to dramatize the idea of consumers embracing a more untamed or mischievous side. The campaign became closely connected with Jack Link's brand recognition. The company also entered sports marketing, signing a sponsorship agreement with the Seattle Mariners in 2013. In 2015, it updated its logo to support the stated "Feed Your Wild Side" positioning. In 2017, the Sasquatch campaign was extended to include NBA player Karl-Anthony Towns. The company continued portfolio expansion in 2019 by acquiring Golden Island from Tyson Foods. Golden Island added another meat-snack label and reinforced Jack Link's role as a multi-brand operator in the category. The company has also used nutrition-oriented communications, including commentary from nutritionist Christina Meyer-Jax, to explain the dietary role and protein content of meat snacks. Jack Link's operates internationally, with products and brands sold in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Mexico. Its expansion has also brought supply-chain scrutiny. In 2021, European supermarket groups announced restrictions on Brazilian beef products because of suspected connections between local cattle production and Amazon rainforest clearing. Reference material noted that Jack Link's sources cattle from Brazil. This issue forms part of the broader environmental and traceability debate around beef supply chains; the available material does not establish a definitive legal or regulatory finding against the company. Jack Link's remains privately held, and current executive, financial, and ownership details beyond the operating-company descriptions in the available references are not sufficiently documented here.

• 2021

  Brazilian beef sourcing controversy enters retailer debate

  [1]Jack Link'sen.wikipedia.org

  European retailers restricted Brazilian beef products amid concerns about suspected links between cattle production and Amazon deforestation, with Jack Link's identified as a company sourcing cattle from Brazil.

• 2019

  Golden Island acquisition

  [1]Jack Link'sen.wikipedia.org

  Jack Link's acquired the Golden Island brand from Tyson Foods.

• 2017

  Sasquatch campaign expands into NBA marketing

  [1]Jack Link'sen.wikipedia.org

  The company extended "Messin' with Sasquatch" advertising to feature NBA player Karl-Anthony Towns.

• 2015

  Logo redesign supports Feed Your Wild Side positioning

  [1]Jack Link'sen.wikipedia.org

  Jack Link's introduced a new logo intended to represent its revised positioning and broader consumer appeal.

• 2014

  European meat-snack expansion through Unilever acquisition

  [1]Jack Link'sen.wikipedia.org

  The company acquired Unilever's meat-snack division, including BiFi, Peperami, and a German manufacturing unit.

• 2013

  Seattle Mariners sponsorship begins

  [1]Jack Link'sen.wikipedia.org

  Jack Link's signed a sponsorship agreement with the Seattle Mariners as part of its sports and entertainment marketing activity.

• 1986

  Jack Link's is founded in Wisconsin

  [1]Jack Link'sen.wikipedia.org

  John "Jack" Link founded the business in Minong, Wisconsin, building on family sausage-making traditions and focusing on packaged meat snacks.

Portable, protein-oriented meat snacks with bold flavors, convenient single-serve formats, and an irreverent outdoor and adventure personality.

• Beef jerky · 1986

  Jack Link's Beef Jerky

  The brand's core product family consists of seasoned, dried beef snacks sold in multiple flavors and package sizes. Original and teriyaki-style varieties are among the named offerings associated with the brand. The products are marketed as portable, shelf-stable snacks for everyday, travel, outdoor, and convenience occasions. Bacon jerky is made from salt-and-sugar-cured pork and adapts the company's drying and seasoning approach to a bacon-based snack. It broadens the portfolio beyond beef while preserving the brand's meat-snack identity.

• Meat snacks

  Jack Link's Meat Sticks

  Individually portioned meat sticks extend the brand's jerky proposition into a cylindrical snack format. They are designed for portability and convenient consumption and form part of the company's broader shelf-stable meat-snack range.

• Meat snacks

  Jack Link's Meat Snack Bars

  Meat bars provide a larger or differently shaped alternative to strips and sticks while retaining the brand's emphasis on savory flavor, convenience, and protein-oriented snacking.

• European meat snacks

  BiFi

  BiFi is a European meat-snack brand that became part of Jack Link's portfolio through the 2014 acquisition of Unilever's meat-snack division. It gives the group an established brand presence across European markets.

• European meat snacks

  Peperami

  Peperami is a meat-snack brand included in Jack Link's 2014 acquisition from Unilever. Reference material identifies sales in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Mexico.

• Premium meat snacks

  Golden Island

  Golden Island joined Jack Link's portfolio in 2019 after its acquisition from Tyson Foods. The brand expanded the company's presence in meat snacks and complemented its existing jerky and dried-meat offerings.

• 2021

  Brazilian beef sourcing and Amazon deforestation concerns

  Several European supermarket chains said they would stop selling some or all beef products from Brazil amid suspected connections between cattle production and the clearing of Amazon rainforest areas. Reference material identified Jack Link's as sourcing cattle from Brazil. The available source does not establish that Jack Link's itself was found legally responsible for deforestation.

  Source

Read more

• 2017Messin' with Sasquatch featuring Karl-Anthony Towns

  United States

  The established Sasquatch campaign was extended with NBA player Karl-Anthony Towns, linking the brand's humorous character platform to basketball culture.

  Outcome. Expanded the campaign into a prominent professional-athlete partnership.

  Source
• 2015Feed Your Wild Side logo and positioning update

  North America

  The company introduced a redesigned logo intended to better represent the brand's "Feed Your Wild Side" positioning and broaden its appeal.

  Outcome. Updated the visual identity while retaining the brand's outdoors-oriented personality.

  Source
• 2013Seattle Mariners sponsorship

  United States

  Jack Link's signed a sponsorship agreement with the Seattle Mariners, using professional sports to extend the brand's visibility beyond retail packaging and traditional advertising.

  Outcome. Added a baseball sponsorship platform to the company's sports-marketing activity.

  Source
• 2000Messin' with Sasquatch

  United States

  Jack Link's built a recurring advertising platform around humorous encounters between consumers and a fictional Sasquatch. The campaign connected beef jerky with wilderness, irreverence, and an instinctive or untamed side of the consumer. It became one of the brand's most recognizable long-term marketing assets.

  Outcome. The campaign became one of the brand's most recognizable long-term marketing assets.

  Source

• 2019

  Acquire Golden IslandM&A

  Background

  Jack Link's continued to expand its meat-snack portfolio through branded acquisitions.

  Action taken

  The company acquired Golden Island from Tyson Foods.

  Aftermath

  Golden Island became part of the company's broader multi-brand meat-snack portfolio.

  Source

• 2015

  Refresh the brand identity around Feed Your Wild SideStrategy

  Background

  The company wanted its visual identity to better express the brand's positioning and appeal to a broader audience.

  Action taken

  Jack Link's introduced a redesigned logo.

  Aftermath

  The updated identity complemented the company's continuing Sasquatch-led advertising and outdoor-oriented brand personality.

  Source

• 2014

  Acquire Unilever's meat-snack divisionM&A

  Background

  Jack Link's sought to expand its consumer base and international presence, particularly in Europe.

  Action taken

  The company acquired the division, including BiFi, Peperami, and an Ansbach, Germany manufacturing unit.

  Aftermath

  The transaction added established European brands and manufacturing capacity to Jack Link's international portfolio.

  Source

1. 1Jack Link'sen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Jack Link's official websitejacklinks.com