Pirate Brands

The story of Pirate Brands begins in 1987 with founder Robert Ehrlich. He noticed that most cheese puffs on the market didn't contain any real cheese, inspiring him to create a puffed rice and corn snack. This led to the creation of Pirate's Booty, a snack with ingredients people could actually pronounce. For years, the brand sailed steadily, building a following. The first major event on the horizon came in 2013 when B&G Foods acquired Robert's American Gourmet, the parent company of Pirate Brands, for approximately $195 million. This acquisition brought Pirate's Booty and its sibling snacks, Smart Puffs and Original Tings, into a larger fleet of food brands. The brand's value more than doubled under B&G's ownership. This growth attracted an even bigger fish. In 2018, The Hershey Company announced its acquisition of Pirate Brands from B&G Foods for $420 million. The deal placed Pirate Brands within Hershey's Amplify division, a hub focused on expanding its better-for-you snack offerings. The move signaled a clear strategy by the chocolate giant to capture more of the growing snack market.