In February of 1957, Lester Kelley and his two oldest sons, Hollis and Everette, and Mr. Max Glisson, who was the plant manager at that time, purchased Windham Packing Company from Mr. Paul Windham. In April of 1957, they incorporated as Elba Packing Company. A few years later, Lester’s youngest son, Dwight, joined the business and purchased Mr. Glisson’s shares. In 1962, the building was totally destroyed by fire and was reconstructed by its employees and some local contractors. In 1989, the company took a big step and constructed a new distribution facility across the road from the manufacturing facility in order to diversify into other product lines to service the growing foodservice industry. That same year, the name of the company was changed to Kelley Foods of Alabama, Inc. to better identify itself as a diverse food company and not just a meat packing company.

In the early years, the company focused on meat packing (pork and beef), and custom meat processing, with twelve employees and an annual payroll of about $25,000. Since then, Kelley Foods has developed into a small regional Sausage Manufacturer and Food Distributor with approximately 160 employees. Initially, the trade area was about a 50 mile radius of Elba, but it now ranges to about a 150 mile radius of Elba, serving customers in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi.

The company is still owned and operated by the Kelley family. Hollis Kelley, the oldest of Lester’s sons, passed away in December 2001, but his oldest son, Jerry, is the Vice President of the food distribution division. Everette Kelley retired in December 1997 from his previous position as President and CEO, but he remains on the board of directors and still stirs around the business quite often. His two sons, Eddie and Scott, came back to the business after graduating from college. Eddie, the older son, took over as the company President and CEO after Everette’s retirement, and after Dwight’s retirement, Scott took over as Vice President of the manufacturing division. Dwight Kelley, the youngest of Lester’s sons, retired in April 2005. The support and understanding of their families and the devotion and hard work of the entire team of the Kelley Foods family are the foundation of the success and growth of our great company. We invite you to experience the difference of Kelley Foods and our quality brand. KELLEY’S, “A Great Tastin’ Sensation”.