1988 – Another of the “Big Three” U.S. Tuna Producing company, the once iconic CHICKEN OF THE SEA brand, started by Mr. Frank Van Kamp in 1914, moves almost ALL of it’s operations to an INDONESIAN corporation P.T. MANTRUST (whose primary creditor was Prudential Life Insurance) after 74 years of operation in the UNITED STATES.
In 1997 Chicken of the Sea morphed into the investment group TRI-UNION SEAFOODS LLC, made up of three partners: (1.) THAI UNION INTERNATIONAL INC., a Thai conglomerate based in BANGKOK, Thailand and the (then) largest tuna packer in ASIA and second-largest in the world, and; (2.) Mr. EDMUND A. GANN (formerly Goncalves), the American owner of CARIBBEAN MARINE SERVICE, CO. INC., a tuna-fishing fleet, and; (3.) TRI-MARINE INTERNATIONAL INC., a global trading company formed in SINGAPORE in 1972 dealing with tuna and headed by Mr. RENALTO CURTO, President and Majority Shareholder. These three changed the name of the company to CHICKEN OF THE SEA INTERNATIONAL.
In 2000 Tri-Marine International Inc. & Edmund A. Gann *SOLD* their 50% interest to THAI UNION INTERNATIONAL, INC., leaving THAI UNION as the sole owner, that also included a merger.
With a 2003 acquisition of EMPRESS INTERNATIONAL (an importer of shrimp & shellfish) Chicken of the Sea International annual sales climbed to $600,000,000.
In 2015 came the collusion and “price fixing” charges; which *STUCK*, and cancelled a planned BUMBLE BEE/CHICKEN OF THE SEA merger.
In May of 2018 – Chicken of the Sea finally moved their “headquarters” from SAN DIEGO to El Segundo, California.
*EDITORIAL NOTE: The iconic Chicken of the Sea MERMAID (named “Catalina“) introduced in ads in the 1950s was *first* portrayed by actress and singer Ms. Grace Lee Whitney; whom many “baby-boomers” and STAR TREK fans may remembers better from her many appearances in both the original TV show and Star Trek Conventions.