McCormick & Company

McCormick & Company

McCormick & Company logo
McCormick & Co. headquarters in Sparks
Type	Public
Traded as	Common : MKC.V Common non-voting : MKC S&P 500 Component (MKC)
Industry	Processed & Packaged goods
Founded	1889 (1889) in Baltimore, Maryland
Founder	Willoughby McCormick
Headquarters	Sparks, Maryland, United States
Key people	Lawrence E. Kurzius, President & CEO
Products	Spices, herbs, flavorings
Revenue	US$ 4,123.4 million (2013) US$ 4,014.2 million (2012)
Operating income	US$ 550.5 million (2013) US$ 578.3 million (2012)
Net income	US$ 389.0 million (2013) US$ 407.8 million (2012)
Total assets	US$ 4,449.7 million (2013) US$ 4,165.4 million (2012)
Total equity	US$ 1,947.7 million (2013) US$ 1,700.2 million (2012)
Number of employees	8,000 (approx)
Website	mccormickcorporation.com

McCormick & Company is a Fortune 1000 company that manufactures spices, herbs, and flavorings for retail, commercial, and industrial markets. The company began in 1889 in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. One hundred years later, McCormick moved from downtown Baltimore to the suburb of Hunt Valley, Maryland. McCormick has approximately 8,000 employees. The company is headquartered in Sparks, Maryland.

Its brands include McCormick; Zatarain's, Lawry's, Old Bay Seasoning, Mojave Foods, Thai Kitchen and Simply Asia (United States); Ducros, Drogheria & Alimentari, Kamis, Galeo, Margao, Silvo, and Vahine (Europe); Club House spices and Billy Bee Honey (Canada); Schwartz (United Kingdom); Aeroplane Jelly and Keen's Mustard (McCormick Foods Australia); Kamis (Poland).

Willoughby M. McCormick started the business in Baltimore at age 25 in 1889. From one room and a cellar, the initial products were sold door-to-door and included root beer, flavoring extracts, fruit syrups and juices. Seven years later, McCormick bought the F.G. Emmett Spice Company and entered the spice industry. In 1903, Willoughby and his brother Roberdeau incorporated the company in Maine; it was reincorporated in Maryland in 1915. Most of the company's assets and records were destroyed in the Great Baltimore Fire of 1904, though a new five-story building was erected on the same site within 10 months. Willoughby's nephew Charles P. McCormick began working for the company in the summer of 1912 and was elected to the Board of Directors in 1925.