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HISTORY
63 YEARS OF TRADITION
OUR HISTORY
P.A.N. SINCE 1960
The P.A.N. brand was born in 1960 in Venezuela thanks to the creation of pre-cooked corn meal that restored the traditional way of preparing arepas. Today it is a global brand with a growing portfolio that includes corn meal, mixes, frozen foods, sauces and spreads, and other foods.
Today, this brand can be found in more than 100 countries around the world.
1954
THE FIRST CORN MEAL PROCESSING PLANT
Juan Lorenzo Mendoza Quintero, son of Lorenzo Mendoza Fleury, built a corn processing plant in Turmero, Venezuela, to replace imported ingredients and process locally the corn needed to brew the popular Polar beer.
This first plant would later become Alimentos Polar and would mark the beginning of the production of P.A.N. corn meal.
1960
CREATION OF P.A.N. CORN MEAL
On December 10, 1960, P.A.N. corn meal was launched on the market. A product developed by Juan Lorenzo Mendoza Quintero, Carlos Roubicek and a group of collaborators, all visionaries at the time, took advantage of their corn processing plant to create a product that would allow Venezuelans to process, in a simple and practical way, the corn dough needed to prepare arepas on a daily basis. The corn meal was designed to simplify the manual processes of cleaning, milling, drying and grinding.
The product had to bear a name that would represent the idea of a "Venezuelan bread" or "pan" in Spanish. That is how the name P.A.N., which stands for "Productos Alimenticios Nacionales" (National Food Products), was born.
1963
NEW PRODUCTION PLANT
After the launching of P.A.N. corn meal in 1960, the production needs for precooked corn meal increased exponentially, so the need to build a new plant came up to supply the production that from the beginning was assumed by Planta Turmero. This was the foundation of Planta Chivacoa, in the state of Yaracuy, Venezuela.
1996
INTERNATIONAL PRESENCE
The international presence of Empresas Polar's food business begins with the beginning of operations in Colombia with a plant and its own distribution system.This facility was the first outside Venezuela to produce P.A.N. corn meal.
2000
NEW INNOVATIVE MIXES
Beginning in the year 2000, the P.A.N. brand portfolio began to grow with the introduction of specialized products and mixes for the preparation of traditional Venezuelan recipes, for example, frying mixes, for cachapas, sweet arepitas, corn and rice mixes, whole wheat mixes, among others.
2014
P.A.N. CORNMEAL PRODUCTION BEGINS IN THE UNITED STATES
The production of food products in the United States began with the setting up of the International Grains and Cereal (IGC) plant, located in Greenville, Texas. From this facility, local markets are supplied and exports are made to a large number of countries.
2020
ALIMENTOS POLAR SPAIN WAS BORN
Alimentos Polar established in Spain, with a portfolio of frozen products typical of the Venezuelan cuisine, to which P.A.N. corn meal joins, as well as other products with Venezuelan brands of great recognition. Alimentos Polar Europe is also established to directly serve our customers and consumers in that continent.
2021
NEW IMAGE
As part of the 60th anniversary celebration, the emblematic P.A.N. brand precooked corn meal renewed its identity and packaging. This rebranding preserved the iconic elements and presented an aesthetic that shows the company's evolution and growth in the domestic and global markets.