Arnott's Biscuits Limited is an Australian producer of biscuits and snack food. Founded in 1865, they are the largest producer of biscuits in Australia and a subsidiary of KKR. History In 1847, Scottish immigrant William Arnott opened a bakery in Morpeth, New South Wales. Later in 1865 he moved to a bakery on Hunter Street, Newcastle, providing bread, pies and biscuits for the townspeople and the ships docking at the local port. Until 1975 the company was under family control with the descendants of William Arnott, including Halse Rogers Arnott and Geoffrey H. Arnott, acting as Chairman. Arnott's, in common with the majority of Australian biscuit manufacturers, operated primarily in its home state, New South Wales, but has manufacturing plants in Virginia, Queensland (manufactures only plain, cream and savoury biscuits) and Shepparton, Victoria. In 1949 it merged with Morrows Pty Ltd, a Brisbane biscuit manufacturer, forming William Arnotts, Morrow Pty Ltd. In the 1960s, a series of amalgamations and acquisitions in the Australian market resulted in the creation of the Australian Biscuit Company Pty Ltd. This included Arnotts and other companies such as Brockhoff Biscuits, Arnott-Motteram and Menz in South Australia, Guest's Biscuits in Victoria, and Mills and Ware in Western Australia. The Australian Biscuit Company was later renamed Arnott's Biscuits Pty Ltd. In 1997, Arnott's Biscuits was subject to an extortion bid by Queenslander Joy Ellen Thomas, aged 72 years, who allegedly threatened to poison packets of Arnott's Monte Carlo biscuits in South Australia and Victoria. The company conducted a massive recall and publicity campaign, publishing the extortionist's threats and demands in full-page newspaper ads. However, Ms. Thomas was not charged with any offence as the prosecution dropped the case against her because of conflicting evidence. The recall cost the company A$22 million, but Arnott's was praised for its openness and honesty in dealing with the crisis. In 1997, the Campbell Soup Company of North America, a shareholder of Arnott's since the 1980s, acquired Arnott's in full. Thus, in 1997, Arnott's Biscuits Ltd became a wholly owned subsidiary of the Campbell Soup Company. This caused a significant amount of controversy in Australia, based on the desire for such an Australian icon to remain in Australian hands, and a fear that Campbell's would Americanise the products. Manufacturing of Arnott's biscuits, however, remained in Australia, and as part of a long-term expansion plan, Arnott's closed its Melbourne factory in September 2002.