The Story Behind Jimmy Dean Bacon and the Brand’s Rise to Fame

If you’ve cooked up bacon for breakfast recently, chances are it was a pack of familiar pre-cooked Jimmy Dean bacon slices. Jimmy Dean is one of the biggest bacon brands in America today But who is Jimmy Dean and how did his name become so synonymous with bacon?

In this article we’ll look at the man behind the brand – country music star Jimmy Dean. We’ll learn how he went from singer to successful businessman with his own bacon company.

We’ll also uncover how Jimmy Dean bacon is made today and why it has remained a top-selling precooked bacon brand for over 50 years. Let’s dive into the savory story behind those famous bacon slices.

Jimmy Dean – The Man Behind the Brand

To understand the Jimmy Dean bacon of today, you have to go back to the man himself – Jimmy Dean. Before launching a bacon empire, Jimmy Dean was a country music icon.

Born in 1928 in Texas, Dean dropped out of high school and joined the Air Force. After his service, he pursued a career in country music. His smooth voice and talent for songwriting shot him to fame in the 1950s.

Jimmy Dean co-hosted a country music TV show and won a Grammy for his hit song “Big Bad John” By the 1960s, he was a household name

But when his music career stalled in the late 60s, Dean found a new calling – breakfast food.

From Music to Meat – Jimmy Dean Foods is Born

Leveraging his fame and business savvy, Jimmy Dean launched his own food company in 1969. His goal was to provide quick, convenient breakfast meals like sausage and bacon.

Jimmy Dean Foods debuted its first product – fresh, raw Jimmy Dean Pure Pork Sausage. Rolls of ready-to-cook sausage were sold in grocery stores nationwide.

The convenience of Jimmy Dean’s pre-seasoned sausage and the trusted brand name were a big hit. Within one year, the company earned $8 million in sales!

Building on that success, Jimmy Dean Foods expanded into fully cooked meat products throughout the 1970s. This included precooked bacon processed and packaged for convenience.

Rise of Jimmy Dean Precooked Bacon

Jimmy Dean entered the precooked bacon market in 1975 with two innovations:

1. First mass-produced precooked bacon – Jimmy Dean developed large-scale manufacturing processes to create consistent ready-to-eat bacon slices. This allowed them to supply major grocery chains coast-to-coast.

2. First bacon sold in resealable packages – Jimmy Dean packaged precooked bacon slices in resealable bags. This kept unused bacon fresh while providing easy microwave reheating.

These innovations fueled consumer demand for more convenient breakfast foods. Jimmy Dean’s tasty precooked bacon in easy resealable packs quickly dominated grocery store shelves by the 1980s.

To keep up with demand, Jimmy Dean Foods opened a state-of-the-art bacon processing facility in Iowa in 1985. High-speed slicing and packaging lines churned out bacon 24/7.

Advertising & Pop Culture Boost Bacon Sales

Jimmy Dean Foods leveraged clever ads, promotions and TV appearances to boost their bacon’s popularity in the 80s and 90s:

• Memorable Sizzlean ads – Animated commercials featured a cartoon Jimmy Dean raving about the “sizzlean” sound his bacon makes.

• In-store samplings – Offering free samples got shoppers hooked on the tasty convenience.

• Oprah endorsement – A 1999 Oprah segment declared Jimmy Dean precooked bacon “The Rolls Royce of bacon.” Sales exploded.

• Hollywood cameos – Placement in movies like Forrest Gump cemented Jimmy Dean’s status as the iconic bacon brand.

By the mid-1990s, Jimmy Dean controlled over 55% of the precooked bacon market. Their bacon could be found in 90% of American households.

Why Jimmy Dean Bacon Became So Popular

Several key factors helped Jimmy Dean precooked bacon dominate the market:

• Trusted brand – Jimmy Dean’s fame as an entertainer gave the brand built-in trust and likability.

• Precooked convenience – No messy raw bacon grease to deal with. Just open and eat.

• Resealable packaging – Kept unused bacon fresh in the fridge without need for plastic wrap.

• Consistency – Uniform bacon sizes and textures thanks to high-volume automated processing.

• Distribution scale – As a big company, they could supply major grocers coast-to-coast. Smaller brands couldn’t match their distribution.

• Marketing savvy – Funny ads and promotions played up the convenience while making emotional connections with customers.

With valued brand recognition, convenience, quality and availability, it’s no wonder Jimmy Dean dominated grocery store bacon sales.

Jimmy Dean Bacon Today

Jimmy Dean himself passed away in 2010 after a fulfilling career in music, business and philanthropy. But his bacon legacy lives on.

In 2018, the Jimmy Dean brand was acquired by meat processing giant Tyson Foods for $2.16 billion. Tyson continues manufacturing best-selling precooked bacon products under the Jimmy Dean name today.

Jimmy Dean bacon is now produced in state-of-the-art USDA bacon processing facilities in Iowa and Tennessee:

• Whole pork bellies are stacked onto cutting machines
• Blades precisely slice the bellies into uniform bacon strips
• Sliced bacon moves through smokehouses to absorb natural wood smoke flavoring
• Fully cooked bacon is packaged in resealable bags for convenience

Thanks to efficient mechanized processes, Jimmy Dean still leads the pack in precooked bacon innovation and quality. Their bacon remains a top seller, over 50 years after it first launched.

An Iconic Bacon Brand Lives On

Jimmy Dean’s journey from country music fame to convenient breakfast food pioneer is truly remarkable. His bacon brand has endured for over half a century by valuing quality, consistency and convenience.

That familiar red and yellow Jimmy Dean packaging represents a trusted American breakfast staple. Behind those perfectly uniform precooked bacon slices is an inspiring story of innovation that revolutionized the way America eats breakfast.

So next time you enjoy the smoky goodness of Jimmy Dean bacon, appreciate the tasty history behind this iconic brand. From raw sausage to precooked bacon, Jimmy Dean has certainly left his mark on America’s breakfast culture.