Manitowoc, WI – October 2026
Lakeside Foods was featured in Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce’s (WMC) 2026 Manufacturing Month campaign, Wisconsin Manufacturers ‘Make’ Your Day. The campaign follows a typical Wisconsinite from the morning alarm to an evening at home and points out the Wisconsin-made products that show up along the way.
When it’s time for dinner, Lakeside Foods is on the table.
Celebrating Manufacturing Month
Every October, WMC joins manufacturers and business groups across the country to celebrate Manufacturing Month and recognize the companies and workers behind Wisconsin’s reputation as a state that makes things. According to WMC, manufacturing contributes $73.8 billion to Wisconsin’s GDP and employs one in six workers in the state, supporting nearly half a million jobs.
“Wisconsin is a state built by makers,” said WMC President & CEO Kurt Bauer.
This year, WMC created a printable poster and companion column built around a “day in the life” story. The poster moves through breakfast, the commute, the workday, an afternoon snack, yard work, dinner and a night on the couch, naming a Wisconsin manufacturer at each stop. Dinner features turkey from Jennie-O in Barron and vegetables from Lakeside Foods in Manitowoc.
The poster will be displayed at WMC events throughout the year, including Business Day in Madison, and is available as a free download on WMC’s website as part of its Manufacturing Month resources.
On the Table Since 1887
Lakeside Foods has been part of Wisconsin dinners for a long time. In 1887, Albert Landreth built a canning plant in Manitowoc and packed Wisconsin’s first commercially canned peas from his local crop, selling them under the “Lakeside” name. Nearly 140 years later, the company is still Wisconsin-based and family-owned.
Today, Lakeside Foods employs nearly 1,200 people year-round and brings on more than 1,000 seasonal workers during the summer harvest. The company operates 15 locations across Wisconsin, Minnesota, Ohio and Oregon and works with multi-generation farms in the Great Lakes and Pacific Northwest growing regions. Its frozen and canned vegetables are harvested at peak freshness.
The Manufacturing You Don’t Always See
WMC’s campaign makes the point that most people don’t think about manufacturing as they go about their day. That’s especially true for Lakeside Foods. Many of its vegetables are sold under the store brands of major U.S. retailers, so plenty of families serve Lakeside Foods vegetables without ever seeing the Lakeside Foods name on the bag.
Behind each of those bags are the growers, plant teams, food safety staff and seasonal crews who make it possible. Lakeside Foods is proud to be on the poster alongside Wisconsin names like Harley-Davidson, Sargento, and Kwik Trip.
See WMC’s Manufacturing Month resources at wmc.org.
