Amy’s Kitchen is a vegan and gluten-free company based in Pleasanton, California. The company was founded by Amy Robertson in 1992, with the goal of providing healthy, delicious foods without animal products or harmful ingredients. Though it began as a line of frozen vegetarian entrees, its brand has now expanded to include dairy- and gluten-free baked goods, soup, and other packaged foods.
The company’s first retail establishment was a tiny store in Berkeley, California that exclusively sold Amy’s Kitchen products. The store was so successful that Smith opened a second location on Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley, California, before opening a small restaurant called Amy’s Place with seating for 13 customers. This restaurant served only Amy’s food and had no tables or seats, allowing customers to bring their chairs and sit on the sidewalk while they dined. The restaurant soon expanded to include a baking operation that allowed it to sell Amy’s baked goods, including bagels and desserts. In the summer of 2003, the company moved to its current La Jolla, California headquarters.
It has branched out into making and selling other vegan food products from companies such as Artisana Bread Company, The Nutritional Yeast Company, Spelt Bakery, and Native Forest Foods. Amy’s Kitchen created the Baked Oatmeal line with Native Forest Foods.
Amy’s Place serves only food and allows customers to bring chairs and sit on the sidewalk while they dine. The restaurant also has a bakery shop that sells Amy’s baked goods.
The company also operates two wholesale farms. One farm is in the San Francisco Bay area of California, where it grows spinach, herbs, and other produce for use in its products. The second farm is in Modesto, California, and grows rice, soybeans, wheat, corn, and other grains. The company uses organic and biodynamic farming practices for all its products.
On May 3, 2012, Amy’s announced it opened a new production facility in New Zealand to reduce reliance on China and the U.S. for manufacturing its products. Amy’s also opened production facilities in Mexico City and Sao Pãolo later that year with the help of NGOs who manage each facility to employ women previously unemployed or underemployed.