La Choy

La Choy is an American packaged-food brand associated with canned and shelf-stable Chinese-style ingredients, including bean sprouts, sauces, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, chow mein noodles and related meal components. The brand originated in Detroit in 1922 when Dr. Ilhan New and Wallace J. "Wally" Smith began selling canned mung bean sprouts through Smith's grocery store. Its early proposition was not to reproduce restaurant cuisine exactly, but to make ingredients associated with Chinese-American cooking available in a convenient, familiar packaged form for American households. New later left the company for personal reasons, while Smith died in 1937. Despite the loss of its founders, La Choy expanded its assortment during the 1930s. By the end of that decade, the business offered a broad range of products, including bean sprouts, soy sauce, subgum, kumquats, water chestnuts, brown sauce, bamboo shoots and chow mein noodles. This expansion coincided with growing American interest in East Asian cultures and foods, although the brand's historical advertising framed its products through an explicitly Americanized interpretation of Chinese food. La Choy built its first manufacturing facility in Detroit in 1937. The plant reportedly provided approximately 60,000 square feet of production space. During World War II, the company relocated production roughly 90 miles to Archbold, Ohio, in an effort to reduce overhead and preserve profitability. The Detroit facility was sold to the federal government for munitions production, and the proceeds helped finance the move. In 1943, Beatrice Creamery Co. acquired La Choy Food Products, placing the brand within a larger American food-company structure. Marketing became a major part of La Choy's identity. In the 1960s, the company used television commercials featuring Delbert the La Choy Dragon, a full-bodied Muppet character created during Jim Henson's early commercial work. Delbert was performed by Frank Oz and voiced by Henson; later advertisements paired him with the more timid character Mert, performed by Henson. The commercials presented La Choy ingredients as fast and easy to prepare, using the memorable phrase "quick cooked in dragon fire." A later advertising line, "LaChoy makes Chinese food swing American," made the brand's central positioning explicit: it presented Chinese-inspired pantry foods as convenient products adapted to American tastes and routines. La Choy remained part of Beatrice Foods until 1990, when it was acquired by ConAgra Foods during the dismantling of Beatrice under the ownership and restructuring activities associated with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts. The brand subsequently became part of the Conagra portfolio. It continues to represent a packaged-food approach to American Chinese-style cooking, with its legacy rooted in shelf-stable ingredients rather than a standalone restaurant or full-service food business. Public reference material identifies La Choy as an ongoing Conagra property, while detailed current operating information, corporate leadership assignments specific to the brand, and a standalone official website are not established here.

La Choy began in 1922 in Detroit, Michigan, as a partnership between Dr. Ilhan New and Wallace J. "Wally" Smith. New was later associated with the founding of Yuhan Corporation in South Korea, while Smith operated a Detroit grocery store where the company's first product, canned mung bean sprouts, was sold. The initial business addressed a practical distribution problem: ingredients used in Chinese-American cooking could be preserved, packaged and made available through ordinary American grocery channels rather than being limited to specialty markets or restaurants. New left the company in 1930 for personal reasons. Smith died after being struck by lightning in 1937, but the enterprise continued to develop. During the late 1930s, La Choy expanded beyond bean sprouts into a broad catalog that included soy sauce, subgum, kumquats, water chestnuts, brown sauce, bamboo shoots and chow mein noodles. The wider range helped establish the brand as a pantry supplier for Chinese-style meals rather than a single-product business. In 1937, La Choy constructed its first manufacturing plant in Detroit. The facility had approximately 60,000 square feet of production space. World War II prompted a major operational change. In 1942, management moved the company to Archbold, Ohio, approximately 90 miles from Detroit. The Detroit plant was sold to the federal government for munitions production, and the sale proceeds supported the relocation. The move was intended to lower overhead and maintain profitability during wartime conditions. The company entered a larger corporate setting in 1943, when Beatrice Creamery Co. purchased La Choy Food Products. The brand continued to develop its consumer profile through mass-market distribution and advertising. A notable public appearance occurred on June 23, 1957, when three La Choy principals from Archbold appeared as contestants on the television panel program What's My Line. Their Irish surnames—Muldoon, McCarthy and McDonough—helped conceal their connection to the brand and allowed them to stump the panel. Television advertising became especially important in the 1960s. Jim Henson created commercials featuring Delbert the La Choy Dragon, a full-bodied Muppet performed by Frank Oz and voiced by Henson. Later advertisements introduced Mert, a timid companion performed by Henson. Delbert's presentation of the products as "quick cooked in dragon fire" gave La Choy a distinctive character at a time when packaged-food brands increasingly used television mascots and memorable catchphrases. The campaign also linked convenience with a simplified, Americanized interpretation of Chinese-style cooking. La Choy was eventually held by Beatrice Foods. In 1990, ConAgra Foods acquired the brand during the dismantling of Beatrice associated with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts. La Choy therefore became part of the ConAgra portfolio and remained there as a packaged-food brand. Its historical identity is based on shelf-stable ingredients—particularly canned vegetables, sauces and noodles—marketed to American consumers preparing Chinese-style dishes at home. The available reference material does not establish a separate current corporate headquarters, a standalone public listing, or brand-specific executives.

• 1990

  ConAgra acquires the brand

  [1]La Choyen.wikipedia.org

  ConAgra Foods purchases La Choy from Beatrice Foods during the latter company's dismantling and restructuring.

• 1965

  Delbert the La Choy Dragon appears in commercials

  [1]La Choyen.wikipedia.org

  Jim Henson develops television commercials featuring Delbert, a full-bodied Muppet performed by Frank Oz and voiced by Henson.

• 1957

  La Choy principals appear on What's My Line

  [1]La Choyen.wikipedia.org

  Three La Choy principals from Archbold compete on the television panel show What's My Line and stump the panel.

• 1943

  Beatrice Creamery acquires La Choy

  [1]La Choyen.wikipedia.org

  Beatrice Creamery Co. purchases La Choy Food Products.

• 1942

  Production moves from Detroit to Archbold

  [1]La Choyen.wikipedia.org

  La Choy relocates manufacturing to Archbold, Ohio, selling its Detroit plant to the federal government for wartime munitions production.

• 1937

  Detroit manufacturing plant opens

  [1]La Choyen.wikipedia.org

  La Choy builds its first manufacturing facility in Detroit, with approximately 60,000 square feet of production space.

• 1937

  Wallace J. Smith dies

  [1]La Choyen.wikipedia.org

  Co-founder Wallace J. Smith is killed by lightning, while the business continues to expand its product range.

• 1930

  Ilhan New leaves the company

  [1]La Choyen.wikipedia.org

  New departs La Choy for personal reasons; the company continues operating under new leadership.

• 1922

  La Choy is founded in Detroit

  [1]La Choyen.wikipedia.org

  Dr. Ilhan New and Wallace J. Smith establish the business, initially selling canned mung bean sprouts through Smith's Detroit grocery store.

Convenient, shelf-stable Chinese-style food ingredients adapted for American home cooking.

• Canned vegetables · 1922

  Canned mung bean sprouts

  La Choy's original product was canned mung bean sprouts, introduced when the company began selling through Wallace J. Smith's Detroit grocery store. The product established the brand's core model: preserving an ingredient associated with Chinese-American cooking in a form that could be distributed through conventional American grocery retail and stored in the home.

• Sauces and condiments

  Soy sauce and Chinese-style sauces

  Soy sauce, brown sauce and related prepared sauces formed part of La Choy's expanded assortment by the late 1930s. These products complemented canned vegetables and noodles, allowing consumers to assemble Chinese-style meals from shelf-stable components rather than purchasing individual ingredients from a specialist supplier.

• Noodles and meal components

  Chow mein noodles

  Chow mein noodles became one of La Choy's recognizable meal components. Sold as a packaged pantry item, the noodles supported the brand's emphasis on convenient Chinese-style dishes prepared at home and were marketed alongside vegetables, sauces and other ingredients in the La Choy range.

• Canned vegetables

  Canned water chestnuts and bamboo shoots

  Canned water chestnuts and bamboo shoots were among the vegetables added to La Choy's broad product line during the late 1930s. Their shelf-stable format made ingredients that were less familiar or less readily available in many American markets usable in home-prepared Chinese-style recipes.

• Canned and prepared foods

  Subgum and kumquats

  Subgum and kumquats were also identified as products in La Choy's prewar assortment. They illustrate the breadth of the early catalog, which extended beyond the core bean-sprout and sauce categories into prepared and preserved ingredients presented for American consumers interested in Chinese-style food.

• 1970LaChoy makes Chinese food swing American

  United States

  La Choy used the slogan "LaChoy makes Chinese food swing American" in advertising. The line positioned the brand as a bridge between Chinese-style ingredients and American cooking habits, reinforcing convenience and adaptation rather than strict culinary authenticity.

  Outcome. The slogan became a concise expression of La Choy's long-running Americanized positioning.

  Source
• 1965Delbert the La Choy Dragon

  United States

  Jim Henson created a series of television commercials featuring Delbert the La Choy Dragon. Frank Oz performed the full-bodied character and Henson supplied the voice. Later commercials added Mert, a timid companion performed by Henson. Delbert's catchphrase presented the products as being "quick cooked in dragon fire."

  Outcome. The campaign gave La Choy a distinctive television mascot and connected the brand with fast, playful home preparation.

  Source

• 1990

  Sale of La Choy to ConAgra FoodsM&A

  Background

  Beatrice Foods was being dismantled during restructuring associated with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts.

  Action taken

  ConAgra Foods acquired La Choy from Beatrice Foods.

  Aftermath

  La Choy became part of the ConAgra brand portfolio and is identified as a continuing Conagra property.

  Source

• 1942

  Relocation of manufacturing to ArchboldStrategy

  Background

  World War II created pressure to control costs and repurpose industrial capacity. La Choy's Detroit facility was sold to the federal government for munitions production.

  Action taken

  Management moved the company roughly 90 miles from Detroit to Archbold, Ohio, using proceeds from the plant sale to support the transition.

  Aftermath

  The relocation established Archbold as an important base for the company and allowed La Choy to continue operating during wartime conditions.

  Source

1. 1La Choyen.wikipedia.org