Uncovering the Secret: Who Really Makes Jimmy Dean Bacon Products?

Crispy, smoky Jimmy Dean bacon is a staple breakfast food in many households across America. Jimmy Dean’s premium bacon line offers beloved flavors like hickory smoked and applewood smoked in a variety of convenient formats including fully cooked slices, chopped pieces, and thick-cut slabs.

But despite the popularity of Jimmy Dean bacon, most consumers don’t know the real story behind who manufactures this iconic brand. In this in-depth investigative feature, I’ll uncover surprising facts about the secret company that produces Jimmy Dean bacon sold in stores nationwide.

A Brief History of Jimmy Dean Foods

To understand who makes Jimmy Dean bacon today, we first need to understand the brand’s origins:

• Founded in 1969 by country music star Jimmy Dean
• Originally sold processed pork sausage products
• Acquired by Sara Lee in 1984
• Branched into bacon, breakfast sandwiches, pancakes
• Sold to Hillshire Brands (former Sara Lee meat division) in 2010
• Hillshire acquired by Tyson Foods in 2014

So while Jimmy Dean as a brand has been around for 50+ years, the masterminds behind today’s Jimmy Dean bacon only took over in the past decade or so

Why Tyson Foods Now Owns Jimmy Dean

When Tyson Foods acquired Hillshire Brands in 2014 for $7.7 billion, it gained control of the Jimmy Dean brand and product portfolio.

Tyson is the largest meat processor in the USA supplying pork chicken, and beef to all major restaurants and retailers. By owning Jimmy Dean, Tyson could streamline production and distribution for pre-made breakfast foods.

So the corporate owner today behind Jimmy Dean bacon is Tyson Foods, the meat powerhouse based in Arkansas. But are they actually manufacturing the bacon day to day?

Jimmy Dean Bacon Production Facilities

While Tyson Foods owns the brand, numerous production facilities actually handle cooking Jimmy Dean bacon:

• Tyson Prepared Foods Plant in Sherman, TX – Primary bacon production facility. Cooks and packages the hickory smoked and applewood smoked retail sliced bacon.

• Tyson Facilities in Other States – Process fully cooked bacon slices for food service, plus sausage and other Jimmy Dean products.

• Third-Party Co-Packers – Smaller private producers supplement capacity and fill regional demand. Provides flexibility to scale production.

So Tyson uses a network of internal plants and external partnerships to meet national demand for Jimmy Dean bacon. But a core team in Sherman, TX handles the flagship retail line.

From Farm to Packaging: Jimmy Dean Bacon Process

Here is an overview of how Jimmy Dean bacon goes from fresh pork bellies to packaged cooked bacon:

• Pork bellies from Tyson hog suppliers delivered to facility
• Bellies injected with curing brine containing water, salt, sugar, and nitrites
• Cured for approx. 5-7 days to absorb flavors and start preservation
• Cold smoked with natural hickory or applewood for up to 10 hours
• Sliced and prepared per customer specs (fully cooked, thick cut, chopped, etc)
• Packaged in oxygen-free environment to protect quality and extend shelf life
• Shipped refrigerated to stores or frozen to food service buyers

Tyson’s mass production capabilities combined with time-tested curing and smoking processes allow Jimmy Dean to churn out tons of bacon every day while maintaining consistency.

Why Jimmy Dean Bacon Tastes So Good

In addition to precision manufacturing, a few other factors make Jimmy Dean bacon so tasty:

• Carefully Selected Pork – Tyson breeds pork specifically optimized for flavor, marbling, and curing performance.

• Proprietary Curing Process – Jimmy Dean uses special curing recipes crafted by Tyson R&D chefs for signature flavor.

• Real Hardwood Smoke – Bacon is naturally smoked over several hours using hickory or applewood chips.

• Meticulous QC – Every batch is evaluated by taste, texture, appearance and food safety.

The combination of premium pork, purposeful curing, real smoke, and quality control is why Jimmy Dean consistently delivers exceptional bacon batch after batch.

Can You Get Jimmy Dean Bacon Outside the USA?

Since Jimmy Dean is owned and produced by Tyson Foods, availability outside the United States is very limited. However, some specialty import stores or online retailers may carry the brand in select areas like:

• Canada
• Mexico
• Japan
• United Kingdom
• UAE

But in most countries, Jimmy Dean bacon cannot be directly imported from Tyson. Bacon lovers abroad may need to seek alternative brands or local producers.

Is Jimmy Dean Bacon Better Than Other Brands?

When it comes to flavor, smoke, and accuracy, Jimmy Dean bacon stands out:

• Their proprietary curing and smoking process creates signature flavors unavailable from other major brands.

• Cooking and packaging at Tyson facilities ensures safety, efficiency, and product consistency.

• Vertical integration between pork production and finished bacon enables quality control from farm to table.

The expertise of Jimmy Dean’s technicians and chefs combined with Tyson’s pork supply chain and manufacturing competence is hard to beat.

Should You Pay More for Jimmy Dean Bacon?

Jimmy Dean bacon demands a price premium versus generic store brands for good reasons:

• You’re paying for over 50 years of expertise perfecting smoked bacon flavor.

• Far greater product consistency compared to generic or butchershop bacon.

• Supporting fair labor practices and ethical treatment of livestock by Tyson.

• Ability to order specific slice counts, pack sizes, and cuts tailored to your needs.

• Supply chain transparency and oversight from Tyson as America’s largest processor.

The few extra dollars per pound over no-name bacon buys meaningful quality assurance and culinary heritage.

Tyson Foods – The Powerhouse Behind Jimmy Dean

While Jimmy Dean as a brand pioneered delicious bacon decades ago, today’s products emerge from state-of-the-art Tyson facilities stocked with premium pork. The combination of authentic smokehouse mastery and large-scale meat processing proficiency places Jimmy Dean bacon in a class of its own. So next time you enjoy a sizzling slice, appreciate the work Tyson does every day to bring home the bacon!