Clif Bar & Company Becomes 20 Percent Employee-owned

Clif Bar & Company, the leading maker of all-natural and organic food and performance nutrition for athletes, is pleased to announce the selling of family-owned common stock to its employees through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). Employees through the ESOP own 20 percent of the company, while husband and wife owners — Gary Erickson and Kit Crawford — retain the remaining 80 percent.

“All along we wanted to create a company where we would want to work,” said Crawford, Clif Bar & Company’s co-CEO. “Employee ownership is one more way we could run a different kind of business: one that inspires a team of people to make the kind of delicious, nutritious food we’d like to eat, and that strives for a healthier, more sustainable world.”

“Our company is our people,” said Erickson, founder and co-CEO. “By retaining private, employee ownership we will continue to have the freedom and flexibility to build a sustainable business with long-term focus for future generations.”

No change in management structure will take place, with Erickson and Crawford remaining majority owners and co-CEOs of the company.

Founded in 1992, Clif Bar & Company has greater annual net revenues than $200 million. The company currently has 239 employees and is readying for its move to a new green headquarters at 1400 65th Street in Emeryville, Calif., in the fall.

About Clif Bar & Company
Clif Bar & Company is a leading maker of nutritious, all-natural, organic foods and drinks, including CLIF® BAR energy bar, LUNA®, The Whole Nutrition Bar for Women®; and CLIF Kid®, Nourishing Kids in Motion®. Focused on sports nutrition and healthy snacks, the company is committed to sustaining its people, brands, business, community and planet. clifbar.com