Our Dole^® Story

In 1899 James Dole arrived in Hawaii with $1000 in his pocket, a Harvard degree in business and horticulture and a love of farming. He began by growing pineapples. After harvesting the world’s sweetest, juiciest pineapples, he started shipping them back to mainland USA. To enable as many people as possible to enjoy this delicious fruit, he developed a technique for canning them. He wanted to make the sunshine and taste of Hawaiian pineapples available for everyone. This is how he built the Company: on a reputation of quality. And it remains true to this day.

1851: The foundations of Dole are laid as Samuel Castle and Amos Cooke, originally from Boston, set up their trading company in Hawaii.
1899: James Drummond Dole comes to Hawaii, fresh out of Harvard’s School of Horticulture & Agriculture.
1901: James Dole begins growing pineapples in Wahiawa, on Oahu Island, Hawaii. He founds the Hawaiian Pineapple Company and starts to make the name of “Hawaii” synonymous with “pineapple.” Dole makes his famous quality pledge: “We have built this company on quality, and quality, and quality.”
1907: Dole moves his pineapple cannery to Honolulu and places advertisements in U.S. magazines to promote pineapple – one of the first nationwide consumer advertising campaigns in America.

1911: A Dole engineer, Henry Ginaca, invents a machine that peels, cores and cuts pineapple at the speed of up to 100 pineapples per minute. The Ginaca is now an industry standard.
1915: The Hawaiian Pineapple Company becomes Hawaii’s second largest industry.
1925: Dole holds a recipe contest, and the winning recipe featured in the cookbook is for Pineapple Upside-Down Cake, which ultimately popularizes the dish.
1932: Castle & Cooke acquires ownership of 21% of the Hawaiian Pineapple Company.
1933: Recognizing the popularity and quality associated with James Dole’s name, the company first stamps “DOLE” on cans of pineapple and pineapple juice.

1961: Dole merges with Castle and Cooke and keeps the DOLE brand.
1963: Dole Philippines, the pineapple-growing operations in the Philippines, is organized under the name Dolefil.
1985: David Murdock takes over Castle & Cooke, which owns pineapple and banana producer, Dole Food Company.
1986: The Dole logo is redesigned. The bright yellow sunburst is chosen, signifying freshness, quality, wholesomeness and good-tasting products.
1991: Dole launches the “Dole 5 A Day Program” to encourage young children and their families to eat five or more daily servings of fruits and vegetables.

1995: Dole’s global reach extends to more than 90 countries with a product line of over 170 fresh and packaged food products.
1999: Dole introduces Fruit Bowls^®, the first all-natural fruit snack in a plastic cup.
2004: Dole acquires JR Woods (frozen fruits) in the US.
2007: Dole is named to “World’s Most Ethical Companies” list by Ethisphere Magazine.
2011: Dole acquires berry grower and marketer, Sunny Ridge Farms.
2013: Dole completes sale of Worldwide Packaged Foods and Asia Fresh Businesses to Itochu Corporation.
2020: Dole Packaged Foods launches Sunshine for All Cities program with the Boys and Girls Club of America.
2021: Dole Packaged Foods opens new frozen facility in Georgia.
2023: Dole Packaged Foods brings 11 new innovations to market.

Today Dole is a global leader in the fruit and vegetable industry, known for its unwavering commitment to quality, innovation, and sustainability. Founded in 1851, Dole has pioneered the industry and continues to seek new ways to improve its products and processes. Dole operates in over 90 countries, with a commitment to health and wellness, and offering nutritious and delicious products to consumers worldwide.