TROPICANA
THE RISE OF TROPICANA
Tropicana was founded by Anthony Rossi in 1947 in Bradenton, Florida. Rossi immigrated from Sicily with only $25 and managed to start his company, originally known as the Manatee River Packing Company. At this company, he packaged and sold fruit salad boxes and slowly became very popular. After only 2 years, he moved his business from Palmetto, Florida, to Bradenton, Florida, where he rebranded his company as Fruit Industries, Inc. He also created the Tropicana name here and registered the trademark for its juice products.
THE JUICE THAT CHANGED BREAKFAST
At The Fruit Industries, Inc. Rossi invented and patented the flash pasteurization of juice that rapidly heated the juice to destroy harmful bacteria while maintaining its fresh taste making it possible to sell fresh tasting, orange juice in refrigerated and shelf-stable packages. This breakthrough set Tropicana apart from frozen concentrate brands and helped the company become one of Florida's leading food manufacturers. In 1978 Anthony Rossi sold the company to Beatrice Foods for $490 million and later PepsiCo purchased the brand in 1998. Today, Tropicana remains one of the world's best known juice brands, and its innovations helped transform refrigerated orange juice from a luxury item into an every day breakfast staple found in homes around the globe.
