bakingbread

a Family Business 130 Years Strong

ONSIDERING THAT ak-mak Bakeries is nearly 130 years old, it’s safe to say they must be doing something right. Headquartered in Sanger, ak-mak crackers have been a staple in many American households as a healthy alternative to processed foods and a filling snack for people of all ages.

Made of organically-grown whole wheat flour, naturally cold pressed sesame oil, clover honey, dairy butter, yeast, sesame seeds and salt, the crunchy baked crackers pair nicely with pretty much anything you put with them, including wine, cheese, tapenade, veggies or by themselves. They’re even portable enough to enjoy on a hike or a road trip.

The foundation started in 1893 when Armenian immigrant Jacob Soojian came to America and started baking and sharing his hometown foods, such as Arabic (pita) bread, Dernackly bread and Armenian cracker bread with his fellow brethren. Settling in Massachusetts, Jacob’s son Paul and nephews Sarkis and Michael soon joined the emerging family business. In 1936, the family moved to Fresno and renamed the company ak-mak as it launched new product offerings. In the early 1970s, the business relocated again to Sanger.

Jacob’s great-great-nephew, Tanny Soojian and his mother Sharline Soojian manage the business today. 4 continued on page 28

Tanny grew up working at ak-mak at a young age, helping build the bakery and specialty production machinery used currently. “Most of the community or their family members and friends worked here at some point in their life,” Tanny says. “Ak-mak has so many extended friends and family. It’s nice to have that legacy.”

“It’s nice to have forged those relationships early on in life. A lot of people who worked at ak-mak are still friends today,” Tanny says. “Work was work and the family was pretty serious about it, but one thing I remember is when used to produce an Armenian pizza called Lahmajoon and we had a day (around the holidays) where we would all get together and make packages of it to give out to family and friends.”

The distinct, sweet smell of baking crackers is so unique, one will never get used to that wonderful aroma as is continually emphasized by the people who visit ak-mak headquarters. “People comment that they can find the place by the smell, that they follow their nose here.

Not much has changed to the recipe for the Armenian cracker bread, with one exception – the new plant based organic ak-mak cracker we recently introduced. This new organic cracker is certified non-GMO and plant based. We have also added a new white sesame akmak cracker to our product line.

Another feature our customers will notice is our new packaging design along with our new website. Growing up, Tanny says that healthy eating was always inherent in his childhood and ak-mak has always been particular about finding sustainable, high-quality ingredients for its products, going against the grain of other popular processed convenience snacks.

“It was hard to find organic foods in the 1950s, but today it’s a lot easier to source,” Tanny says. However, it’s not just the quality of the crackers that’s kept ak-mak alive.

“We have to give credit to our customers. It’s been a generational product to their families; they grow up eating it and then they give it to their grandkids. That’s what has kept us going; we’re very grateful to them for enjoying and sharing it,” Tanny says. “We’ve really enjoyed reading the stories of the people who have written in and told us how ak-mak has impacted their lives and families. (Ak-mak) is a healthy alternative to other foods; it encourages us to work hard on the belief that our family built and continue creating something that people enjoy.” •

Extras on eating ak-mak:

As a family we eat a lot of ak-mak crackers. It has been heartwarming to not only watch my children grow up eating ak-mak, but now watching my grandchildren enjoy it. Some of our favorite ways to eat ak-mak are by adding some avocado slices with a pinch of salt to the cracker, spreading an herb cream cheese on the cracker, or melted cheese on the crackers. Another favorite is creating a charcuterie board paired with our favorite glass of wine.