The History of Ryvita Crackers

The Ryvita Company was started by an Englishman named John Edwin Garratt. After seeing rye crispbreads abroad, he decided to introduce the food to his home country and started his company on April 4, 1925. At first, Ryvita’s rye crispbreads (crackers) were imported from Sweden, but in 1932, a Ryvita bakery was opened in Birmingham. Ryvita crispbreads were one of the first packaged goods produced in the baking sector in Britain and were sold in tins. The original factory was destroyed during World War II, so a new bakery was built in Poole in 1949. That same year, Garfield Weston purchased the Ryvita Company. Due to wartime rationing, print ads for Ryvita crackers were rare until the 1950s, but when they began running, they made quite the splash and even included a partnership with Dior. Ryvita crispbreads were also photographed at the summit of Mount Everest in 1961 after providing sustenance to mountaineers. In 1975, the product range was broadened to include both Original and Swedish-Style varieties. Crackerbread was launched in the 1980s and 1988 saw the debut of a sweet variety called Currant Crunch (now Fruit Crunch). In 2002, four varieties of Ryvita Minis were released, and in 2008, the company debuted Ryvita Thins, with Ryvita Rye Cakes following in 2017. Today, Ryvita crackers are still enjoyed in many parts of the world, including the United States.