Premium Herring Since 1932
Baensch Food Products Co., a division of Wild Foods, Inc., packs premium Atlantic herring from Nova Scotia. Founded in 1932 by the Baensch family, the company was purchased by Kim Wall in 1999. Today, we continue to use the original family recipes for our herring tidbits marinated in wine sauce or sour cream and chive sauce. Baensch Foods is a member of the National Fisheries Institute and is kosher certified through the Chicago Rabbinical Council.

How it all started
Early in the 20th Century, the Baensch family brought their own premium marinated herring recipe to Milwaukee. During the Great Depression, families prepared herring at home using “secret recipes” for the tasty treat. It wasn’t long before Lena Baensch’s recipe became the overall favorite. Soon, Lena, or “Ma” as she was called, was making premium herring for friends and neighbors as well as her family. When it became clear that Lena’s herring was something special, she asked local grocers to sell it in their shops, and in 1932 Ma Baensch herring was born. In 1945, Ma Baensch moved the business to its present location in Milwaukee at 1025 East Locust Street.

Today, you can taste the same quality herring prepared using Lena’s original recipes. Through the years, other herring brands began to compromise their quality and ingredients. We, however, maintained or improved our standards to always give the consumer the highest quality, hand packed, best tasting premium herring on the market. We’ve added some modern manufacturing processes, but Lena’s time-tested recipes and insistence on the best quality herring fillets and marinade ingredients continue today.

Kim R. Wall, President Baensch Food Products Co.
Kim R. Wall purchased Baensch Food Products Co. (brand name – Ma Baensch) in 1999. As president, she is responsible for all aspects of the company’s operation, including growth strategies, sales, production, distribution, marketing, research and human resources for this premium quality herring company. Integral parts of her strategy to achieve Baensch Food Products’ fullest potential include enhanced quality, improved operating efficiencies, expanded full-time employment, increased brand awareness, extended geographic distribution and stringent cost control.

Since taking ownership of the business, Wall has executed a number of marketing strategies to increase awareness of the Ma Baensch brand. She repositioned Ma Baensch herring products from the dairy section to the meat and seafood sections of grocery stores. She added a gold lid and changed the artwork on the jar to create a more upscale and attractive image. And, she received kosher certification to appeal to a wider customer base.

Ma Baensch isn’t Wall’s only experience in the food industry. In 1991, she created SunWild Foods, Inc., where she serves as owner and president. SunWild formulates healthy and high-quality natural flavorings and seasoning blends. These are distributed to manufacturers, primarily Wisconsin natural cheese makers, and retail specialty food stores.

Wall takes her passion for herring a step further as a seafood connoisseur and gourmet cook. From her creative herring recipes to the basics of handling and storing all types of fish, as well as the best techniques to prepare them, when it comes to seafood, Wall has the answers.

Baensch Foods is a member of the National Fisheries Institute (NFI), where Wall serves on the Future Leaders committees. NFI is the nation’s leading advocacy organization for the seafood industry. Wild Foods is a member of the National Association of the Specialty Food Trade (NASFT).

Wall was born and raised in Beloit, Wisconsin. She is a graduate of Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, with a double major in accounting and economics. She is a Certified Public Accountant and has hands-on experience in various business areas, including public accounting, commercial real estate, printing, pre-sort mailing, banking, fund raising, public relations and association management.