About

Using top-rate reliable equipment, providing our employees with a pleasant and safe place to work, and producing the absolute best bread products in the market — this is what we do and we don’t know any other way.

History

pan-o-gold history

What started in 1911 as the Beede Baking Company in Pipestone, Minnesota has grown into the Pan-O-Gold Baking Company we know today. Sold from the Beede family to the Alton family in the 1940s, we became Pan-O-Gold Baking Company — the bakers of “little pans of gold."

Throughout the years, we’ve had much growth through expansion and bakery acquisitions, including Lakeland Bakery in St. Cloud, Minnesota, which is now home to our company headquarters.

Today, Pan-O-Gold is still independent and family owned with Howard (Robin) Alton III at the helm. With three state-of-the art baking facilities, we’re one of the largest fresh bread suppliers in the Midwest.
 

community

We’re committed to making a difference in the communities we serve by giving back to those who have contributed to our success over the past 100 years.

  • Every year we donate over 1 million loaves of bread and other bread products to those in need.
  • We are a supporting sponsor of Second Harvest Heartland, the Upper Midwest’s largest hunger relief organization.
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  • Every year our Country Hearth and Village Hearth Loaves 4 Learning program donates thousands of dollars to schools throughout the Upper Midwest.
  • Since its inception in 2011, Loaves 4 Learning has helped schools earn up to $10,000 per year to use at their discretion.

associations

We believe it is important to be active members in industry associations to help develop and promote professionalism in the baking industry and the industries we serve.

sustainability

Our sustainability mission is to move forward while responsibly managing our shared resources to ensure a sustainable future.

Conserving energy
Committed to protecting the environment through energy efficiency, our Sun Prairie facility has achieved the Energy Star Challenge for Industry. Our St. Cloud and Fargo facilities are currently working to do the same.

Our St. Cloud facility is also a partner in The 5% Challenge for Renewable Energy by St. Cloud Businesses. An initiative to help convert 21.8 million kWh of electricity to renewable energy.

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Recyclable bags
Plastic can take up to 1,000 years to decompose. Our bags are made to break down quickly. We hope by going the extra mile that we — and not our plastic — will be around in the years to come.
 
Reducing waste
Our goal is that every single item that comes into our plants is to be used or recycled; we want nothing to go to landfills. Although this might be unattainable, it is constantly on our minds.
 
Protecting nature
A portion of our sales support Nature Conservancy and other organizations dedicated to protecting the world’s lands, waters and natural habitat.
 
Sedex Compliant
We are proud members of Sedex, a global membership organization dedicated to driving improvements in ethical and responsible business practices in global supply chains. For more information, visit SedexGlobal.

safety & certifications

At Pan-O-Gold, we work hard to obtain and maintain the most rigorous of industry standards.

  • AIB certified
  • Meets or exceeds OSHA
  • FDA approved
  • Pan-O-Gold Baking Co. manufacturing sites are GFSI certified