Lee Kum Kee facts for kids
Logo since 1988
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LKK Global Headquarters at 4 Dai Fat Street in Tai Po Industrial Estate
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| Private | |||||||||||
| Industry | Food | ||||||||||
| Founded | 1888 | ||||||||||
| Founder | Lee Kum Sheung | ||||||||||
| Headquarters |
Tai Po, New Territories
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Key people
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Charlie Lee (Chairman) | ||||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 李錦記有限公司 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 李锦记有限公司 | ||||||||||
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Lee Kum Kee Company Limited (Chinese: 李錦記有限公司) is a famous food company from Hong Kong. It makes many kinds of Chinese and Asian sauces. The company was started by Lee Kum Sheung in 1888 in Nanshui, Guangdong.
Today, Lee Kum Kee makes over 200 different Chinese-style sauces. These include popular ones like oyster sauce, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, and XO sauce. They also make chili sauces, cooking ingredients, and dipping sauces. The company even bought a famous building in London called the Walkie-Talkie skyscraper in 2017!
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How Lee Kum Kee Started
Lee Kum Kee is based in Hong Kong. But its products are sold in over 100 countries around the world. You can find them in China, North America, Europe, Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. The main brand, Lee Kum Kee (simplified Chinese: 李锦记; traditional Chinese: 李錦記; Mandarin Pinyin: Lǐ Jǐn jì; Jyutping: Lei5 Gam2 gei3; literally "the Lee Kum brand"), is very popular. Especially with Chinese communities everywhere. In 2004, Lee Kum Kee was named the Most Popular Brand On-line at the Hong Kong Top Brand Awards.
The Inventor of Oyster Sauce
The company was founded by Lee Kum Sheung (simplified Chinese: 李锦裳; traditional Chinese: 李錦裳; Mandarin Pinyin: Lǐ Jǐncháng; Jyutping: Lei5 Gam2soeng4). He was a chef at a small restaurant in Nanshui, Zhuhai, Guangdong. His restaurant sold cooked oysters. In 1888, he accidentally created oyster sauce. This sauce quickly became a key part of Cantonese and southern Chinese cooking. He then started the Lee Kum Kee company to sell his new sauce. It is still a family business run by the Lee family today.
Growing Around the World
From 1902 to 1932, the company's main office was in Macau. In 1932, it moved to its current headquarters in Hong Kong. Lee Kum Kee later opened offices in the United States of America. Their U.S. headquarters is in City of Industry, California. They also have a Canadian headquarters in Toronto, Ontario.
The company has factories in several places. These include Xinhui, Huangpu, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Los Angeles. The factory in Xinhui is the largest. It covers a huge area of 1,700 acres!
Helping Health and Happiness
In 2016, the Lee Kum Kee family donated $21 million to a special center. It's called the Lee Kum Sheung Center for Health and Happiness. This center helps scientists study how positive feelings can lead to better health and a longer life. They want to understand how being happy affects our health.
The Lee family is very successful. In 2019, their family was worth an estimated $15 billion.
Ensuring Food Safety
Lee Kum Kee takes food safety seriously. In the early 2000s, there were concerns about certain substances in some Chinese and South-East Asian sauces. This was a problem for many companies in the industry, not just Lee Kum Kee.
Lee Kum Kee quickly responded. They stated that any affected products were made before 1999. After 1999, they updated their manufacturing methods. This made sure their products met safety standards. The company also shared reports showing their soy sauce imported into Europe followed all safety rules.
The Lee Kum Kee Group
The Lee Kum Kee Group, or LKK Group, is bigger than just the sauce business. It includes other companies and a charity. These are LKK Health Products and Happiness Capital. The group also has a charitable foundation that helps people.
Leaders of the Group
The company has been led by different members of the Lee family over the years:
- Lee Kum-sheung (1888–1920)
- Lee Shiu-nan (1920–1972)
- Lee Man-tat (1972–2021)
- Sammy Lee (2022–present)
See also
In Spanish: Lee Kum Kee para niños
