Secret Sausage Border Battle: Hormel Sues Johnsonville, Claims Former Employee Stole Recipe

Weiner wars: Hormel Foods worker allegedly stole secret recipe and left for competitor

A former employee at Hormel Foods -- a multinational packaged meat company -- left the company with top-secret sausage recipes and market information -- and then joined its regional competitor Johnsonville, a new federal lawsuit alleges.

Minnesota’s Hormel sues Wisconsin’s Johnsonville alleging stolen sausage secrets

A former Hormel Foods employee made off with top-secret sausage recipes and market intel before joining regional competitor Johnsonville, a new federal lawsuit alleges.

Minnesota-based Hormel sues Wisconsin's Johnsonville, says Johnsonville stole 'trade secrets'

Hormel Foods, Inc. accuses Johnsonville, its Sheboygan Falls-based rival, of using two former Hormel employees to steal "trade secrets.”

Hormel Foods brings case on corporate spying

AUSTIN, Minn. — Hormel Foods Corporation has brought a lawsuit against one of its main competitors, Johnsonville, LLC., claiming its rival in the sausage market "appears to have undertaken a coordinated effort to interfere with Hormel’s employment relationships and obtain Hormel’s confidential, proprietary, and trade secret information." According to documents filed in the United States District Court of Minnesota on June 18, 2025, Hormel claims…

Hormel Foods sues Johnsonville over alleged recipe and intelligence theft

It's being referred to as "sausage subterfuge" and "sausagegate". And it involves two food companies from Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Secret sausage border battle: Hormel sues Johnsonville, claims former employee stole recipe

Hormel Foods is suing its cross-border competitor, Johnsonville, over allegations that it solicited former employees to expose company trade secrets.