Kavli: Making the world a little bit softer

Kavli’s beloved products don’t just taste good, they actually do good. Every year, for more than 60 years, the company has been allocating its surplus profits to charitable causes. So, when you choose a Kavli product, you help make the world a little bit softer.

Kavli has a broad portfolio of much-loved brands and high-quality products, such as spreadable cheese, mayonnaise, dressings, sauces and yoghurts. The classic spreadable cheese with prawns, based on Olav Kavli’s innovation from the early 1900s, is still the bestseller, and is a staple on breakfast tables and in packed lunches. Other tasty flavours include smoked ham, chorizo, Brie and blue cheese, and the latest spreadable cheese, made with Cheddar, is a luscious treat.

Another popular brand is Johnny’s, which was originally founded by a charismatic salesman from Söderhamn. Johnny’s has become Sweden’s best-loved mustard with some 40 per cent of the market, and it continues to grow. As part of Kavli’s continuous innovation, a new range of barbeque products will be launched this year under the brand Johnny’s.

Other brands include Eriks, Bärry, Bollnäsfil, Druvan, Perstorp, Graveleijs, Hultbergs and Västervik. And under the name Kavli Foodservice, the company also develops unique recipes in collaboration with clients such as Max and IKEA, to ensure tasty sauces and dressings in their restaurants.

Kavli’s employees nominate charities to support, this year Nya Kompisbyrån.

Surplus profits to charitable causes

Kavli’s business model is driven by a humanitarian spirit. Every year, any profit not devoted to the company’s operations and continued development goes directly to the Kavli Trust, which carefully selects and distributes the profits to good causes in two main areas: child and adolescent mental health, and responsible consumption and production.

“Our priority is to develop tasty products of great quality, produced in a sustainable way,” says Jonny Mattsson, CEO of Kavli Sweden. “Rather than just maximising output, we have a long-term perspective of creating value and reinvesting in our people and local communities.” Regardless of which Kavli product you purchase, the surplus goes to charitable causes such as Mind and Stadsmissionen Matcentralen. A certain proportion of the funds is also allocated to recipients nominated by Kavli’s employees, most recently Nya Kompisbyrån.

The modern approach can be seen in the recent campaign “Kavli makes the world a bit softer,” which has received plenty of attention. The playful message is well suited for a broader and younger audience, who can see how they can contribute to the community every time they buy a Kavli product.

Kavli is allocating its surplus profits to charitable causes, such as Stadsmissionen. Photo: Västerås Stadsmission

Commitment to grow modern brands

The company also has high ambitions for sustainability and is listed amongst Companies Taking Action, which means that it is working with Science Based Target initiative (SBTi) to reduce emissions in line with climate science to become climate neutral by 2045. The basis of Kavli’s sustainability efforts is divided into four focus areas: safe and healthy products, production and transport, sourcing and packaging, and people and community. “It’s a given that we only offer products that are safe for consumers, but our promise also extends to responsible manufacturing with approved ingredients and carefully selected suppliers,” says Mattsson.

Jonny Mattsson, CEO of Kavli Sweden.

A good example is the spreadable cheese, which contains the highest percentage of cheese on the market. “We melt hard cheese like Edamer and Gouda, add high-quality ingredients such as smoked ham, prawns, or crayfish, and then pasteurise the spreadable cheese for a longer shelf-life,” explains the CEO. “This also reduces waste, as people can squeeze out every last bit from the tubes knowing that the content is still fresh.” The spreadable cheese is gaining admiration also further afield in countries such as Bahrain, Japan, China and South Korea.

“Kavli will continue to invest in developing strong, much-loved brands and irresistible food offerings, as well as a culture that attracts the best talent, so we can grow across markets and contribute even more to our communities,” he concludes. “Everything is for the good of people and community. It’s what we do.”

Kavli was originally founded in 1893, when Olav Kavli opened a tiny cheese store in Bergen, Norway. In 1924, Olav opened his first factory and developed the world’s first spreadable cheese. In 1962, the Kavli Trust became the sole owner and still manages the group today. With operations in Norway, Sweden, Finland and the UK, the Kavli Group has an annual turnover of around SEK 4.2 billion.

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