Private company

Knorr

Logo: Unilever, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons³

German food and beverage trademark owned by the British-Dutch corporation Unilever

Knorr (German: [knɔʁ]) is a German food and beverage trademark based in Heilbronn, Germany, founded in 1838 and owned by the American company McCormick & Company since 2026, after it buys unilever’s bought Knorr's original business, with the exception of Japan, where it is made under license by Ajinomoto. It produces dehydrated soup and meal mixes, bouillon cubes and condiments.² It was founded by Carl Heinrich Theodor Knorr.¹ Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1838Founded¹

Industryfood and tobacco industry¹
HeadquartersHeilbronn¹
Founded inHeilbronn¹
Websitewww.knorr.com

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Corporate structure

Knorr is part of a group headed by Unilever. 185 entities, 55 countries on record. Switch between the flow chart and the network, and select any entity to see its details.

Unilever Liverpool, United Kingdom
- Hindustan Unilever Mumbai, India
  - Novology Subsidiary · India
  - PONDS EXPORTS LIMITED Subsidiary · Mumbai, India
  - UNILEVER INDIA LIMITED Subsidiary · Mumbai, India
- Knorr Heilbronn
- MIXHOLD B.V. Rotterdam, Netherlands
  - UNILEVER SANAYI VE TICARET TURK ANONIM SIRKETI Subsidiary · Umraniye, Turkey
  - UNILEVER THAI SERVICES CO LTD Subsidiary · Bangkok, Thailand
- Unilever (Canada) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Unilever (United States) Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, United States
- UNILEVER OVERSEAS HOLDINGS LIMITED London, United Kingdom
  - Unilever Côte d'Ivoire Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire
  - UNILEVER - ZIMBABWE (PVT) LIMITED Subsidiary · Harare, Zimbabwe
- Unilever Pakistan Karachi, Pakistan
- Unilever Philippines Manila, Philippines
- Unilever Sri Lanka Colombo, Sri Lanka
  - UNILEVER LANKA CONSUMER LIMITED Subsidiary · Colombo, Sri Lanka
- Unilever Sverige Solna, Sweden
- 4P Rube Göttingen Subsidiary · Göttingen, Germany
- Alberto-Culver Subsidiary · Melrose Park
- Algida Subsidiary
- Axe Subsidiary · Grenoble, France
- Ben & Jerry's Subsidiary · South Burlington
- Bovril Subsidiary · London
  - Argentine Estates of Bovril Subsidiary · Argentina
  - Bovril Australian Estates Ltd. Subsidiary · Australia
  - Estates Control Subsidiary · United Kingdom
- Calvé Subsidiary · Delft, Netherlands
- CICA Subsidiary · Jundiaí, Brazil
- Colman's Subsidiary · Norwich
- Continental Subsidiary
- Dermalogica Inc. Subsidiary · Carson
- Dollar Shave Club Subsidiary · Venice
- Dove Subsidiary · Los Angeles, California, United States
- ELAIS Subsidiary
- Findus Subsidiary · Bjuv, Sweden
  - Findus (Norway) Subsidiary · Asker, Norway
- and 160 more

Built from parent and subsidiary links from GLEIF, the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (CC0); subsidiaries, stakes and holdings from Wikidata (CC0). Each entity in the chart links to its source.

The story

Founded by Carl Heinrich Theodor Knorr in 1838, in Heilbronn.¹

Knorr was founded in 1838 by Carl Heinrich Theodor Knorr (1800–1875). Knorr headquarters are in Heilbronn, Germany.

In 1912, the first Knorr bouillon cube was introduced. Carl Heinrich Knorr began experimenting with drying vegetables and seasoning to preserve nutrition and flavour, which led to Knorr's first launch of dried soups across Continental Europe in 1873.

From Wikipedia’s article on Knorr (brand), shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.⁴

Leadership

Who has led Knorr, and when. Pick a name to see everywhere that person has worked.

FounderCarl Heinrich Theodor Knorr¹

Subsidiaries and ownership

Parent company

Unilever

Owners

Maizena since 1959
Unilever since 2000

From Wikidata.¹

Controversies and legal

Controversy

In 2015, the Knorr instant noodles came under scrutiny from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). The product wasn't featured in FSSAI's approved noodle, pasta and macaroni products list.