OAKBROOK TERRACE, IL — Sara Lee Frozen Bakery announced its Chef Pierre pie brand will commemorate 100 years of quality pie baking at the 2022 National Cherry Festival in Traverse City, MI.
Celebrating nearly 60 years and more than 6 billion pies baked at its Michigan bakery, Chef Pierre’s sponsorship at this year’s National Cherry Festival will be a fitting tribute to the bakery’s dedication to the Traverse City community.
Dubbed one of the nation’s most ‘All-American’ festivals, the National Cherry Festival will feature colorful parades, free air shows, nightly music concerts and competitive events for all ages. This year, Chef Pierre will sponsor the Cherry Pie Eating Contests throughout the festival week, July 2-9, and will donate 5,000 cherry pie slices. Every cherry pie consumed during this year’s pie eating contests will be a Chef Pierre cherry pie.
“We are honored to celebrate this milestone 100-year anniversary of baking our wide variety of specialty pies for the nation,” said Craig Bahner, CEO of Sara Lee Frozen Bakery. “Chef Pierre pies have long been the center of family dinners, holiday traditions and desserts in American homes and restaurants.”
Located in Michigan’s robust fruit belt and the Cherry Capital of the World, the Chef Pierre bakery was formerly the Atlantic Pie Company, founded in 1922 by Chris Dendrinos, a Greek immigrant. In 1988, Chef Pierre merged with Kitchens of Sara Lee and is now the No. 1 brand of foodservice pie. Sara Lee Frozen Bakery continues to bolster its time-honored, premier brands like Chef Pierre with a continued focus on growth and innovation for years to come.
