Company

Welcome to San Francisco Bay Brand, Inc., this brief history tells our story about developing the finest and most nutritious fish foods that are available today. San Francisco Bay Brand, Inc is owned and operated by the Schmidt family, headed by Andreas who is a second-generation owner with more than 20 years experience in the aquarium fish food and aquaculture business.

From our predecessor’s in 1934, our goal to provide the most nutritious diets available that are closest to each species natural diet has been dramatically borne out. San Francisco Bay Brand® aquarium fish foods are the favorite, savory foods from their natural environment. Equally important, each wholesome product provides all the essential nutrients that are so vital to fish growth and good health. SFBB now has worldwide distribution for our product lines of Brine Shrimp, Natural Formulated Diets™, Single Ingredient Diets, Dry Diets, Brine Shrimp Eggs, and Seaweed Salad™. We will continue to provide research to develop new diets to enhance the lives of each aquatic pet and the hobbyist.

1934

In 1934, Steinhart Aquarium discovers brine shrimp makes an excellent fish food
The curator of the famous Steinhart Aquarium in California discovered that live brine shrimp from the sunny San Francisco Bay made an excellent fish food. The natural food value of the shrimp plus its consistent taste appeal was an unbeatable combination.

At the outset, only a few gallons of the small crustacean were collected weekly by members of the San Francisco Aquarium Society and fed to the aquarium fishes. Yet, this small operation would give rise to the San Francisco Bay Brand company of today with its complete line of frozen and freeze-dried diets, including the original Sally’s Brine Shrimp, Enhanced Brine Shrimp varieties, Sally’s Single Ingredient Fish Foods, Natural Formulated Diets and Sally’s Brine Shrimp Eggs.

1955

In 1955, Anton Schmidt and his family emigrated from Germany to the United States.
Anton Schmidt and his family emigrated from Germany to the United States. Anton Schmidt, having been trained as a tool and die maker, found employment in a small firm in Los Altos, Calif., repairing aquariums. Schmidt and his wife, Martha, worked there for two years before opening their own business.

1957

In 1957, Schmidt's Aquarium opened
Anton opened Schmidt’s Aquarium and proceeded to make stainless custom and production aquariums until the merger with Metaframe in 1965.

1964

In 1964, Live brine shrimp becomes available to tropical fish hobbyist
Steinhart Aquarium and Leslie Salt formed San Francisco Fish Farms and began selling live brine shrimp to tropical fish hobbyists. In 1965, Aquarium Pacific finalized its merger with East Coast Manufacturers, which sold the GroLux, Wellness and Long Life brands, among others, and formed what was known as Metaframe Corporation.

1968

In 1968, Metaframe Corporation purchased West Coast Operations
Metaframe Corporation also purchased West Coast Operations, which was the parent company for Pemco Manufacturing in Los Angeles, which made aquariums and San Francisco Fish Farms in 1968.

Harding Willinger once told me that Anton Schmidt was extremely passionate about brine shrimp, saw the potential and just needed a vehicle to deliver it nationally. Harding provided that vehicle while at Mattel.

1969

In 1969, Mattel, Inc., a toy company, purchased Metaframe Corp. and San Francisco Bay Brand, Inc.
Metaframe Corporation also purchased West Coast Operations, which was the parent company for Pemco Manufacturing in Los Angeles, which made aquariums and San Francisco Fish Farms in 1968.

Harding Willinger once told me that Anton Schmidt was extremely passionate about brine shrimp, saw the potential and just needed a vehicle to deliver it nationally. Harding provided that vehicle while at Mattel.

1979

In 1979, Mattel divested all of the divisions of Metaframe
leaving San Francisco Bay Brand under the Schmidt family ownership.

After purchasing the company from Mattel, Anton Schmidt started to work in the aquaculture field. People he had met in the UC system of California and others were all interested in the use of Artemia in the commercial shrimp-farming industry, which was gaining notoriety worldwide, with companies such as Cargill, Coca-Cola and ConAgra, just to name a few.

1980

In 1980, Andreas Schmidt came back to the company and operated the San Diego, Salt Lake and Salton Sea facilities
Which supported research and harvest support for SFBB’s aquaculture business.

One thing led to another and after working in South America, China, the Middle East and other locales throughout the world by the mid-80s, Anton Schmidt was instrumental in making brine shrimp a staple diet in the aquaculture industry in 38 countries.

1988

In 1988, San Francisco Bay Brand, Inc. started to develop a line of Natural Formulated Diets to complement the current line of Sally’s Single Ingredient Fish Foods.
In 1988, San Francisco Bay Brand started to develop a line of Natural Formulated Diets to complement the current line of Sally’s Single Ingredient Fish Foods.

From the beginning, as the demand for brine shrimp continued to increase, research projects were initiated to develop several convenient forms of highly nutritious natural products. Throughout the 1990s, they did this by developing a line of Natural Formulated Diets to meet fishes’ specific needs equivalent to their diets in the wild, while also expanding our Sally’s Single Ingredient Fish Foods, to include Bloodworms, Silversides, Sand Eels, Mussel, White Mosquito Larvae, Squid and Beefheart.

1992

In 1992, Andreas Schmidt became president of San Francisco Bay Brand, Inc.
Andreas has continued to be a leader in serving the pet industry and striving to provide the best all-natural diets available for the aquatic hobbyist, zoos, hatcheries, aquariums and aquaculture industries. Andreas Schmidt has served the pet industry serving 17 years, finishing after a term as the president of The World Wide Pet Supply Association and president of the Pet Care Trust Association from 1999 to 2003.

2007

In 2007, San Francisco Bay Brand, Inc. introduces Healthy Herp®
The first all natural highly nutritious reptile foods in convenient easy to use packaging to meet reptiles needs equivalent to their diets in the wild. The product line includes Natural Frozen Reptile Diets, Instant Meals™ and Freeze Dried Reptile Treats.

2009

In 2009, San Francisco Bay Brand, Inc. purchased Ocean Nutrition Americas
Ocean Nutrition operations moved to San Francisco Bay Brand headquarters in Northern California. The acquisition provides more consistency and better availability of Ocean Nutrition products, while allowing San Francisco Bay Brands to utilize its existing expertise and distribution network in a new category, but maintain their individual projects and focus.

2016

In 2016, San Francisco Bay Brand, Inc. will be introducing several new products
San Francisco Bay Brand continues to develop new products and enhance existing products using the latest technology and ingredients. In 2016 San Francisco bay Brand will be adding several new products to their frozen fish food lines.