The Dare Family




With over 1,300 employees and after 115 years in operation, Dare Foods has a wonderful history as a privately-owned, Canadian family business.

This tradition started in 1892, when Charles H. Doerr began producing and selling cookies and candies from his small grocery store in Kitchener (then, Berlin), Ontario. By 1919 the
C. H. Doerr Company was incorporated and expanding
its baking and candy-making facilities to support its now manufacturing business.

After his parents passed away, Carl Dare was raised by his grandparents, joining the company in 1933 and learning the business from his grandfather. Following the death of his grandfather in 1941,
24-year-old Carl took over the leadership of the company. As the company started to expand distribution to all regions of Canada and to ease pronunciation outside the local community, in 1945 the company and family name was changed from “Doerr” to “Dare” creating The Dare Company, Limited, later renamed Dare Foods Limited.

With the assistance of his sons Bryan and Graham, Carl Dare continued to lead the company until 2002 when the first non-family member was appointed President. Bryan and Graham Dare remain co-chairmen of the company’s Board of Directors. The current President, Lee Andrews has been leading the company for the last five years.

Today, the company strives for consistently high quality in all of its products and services, and continually works to develop new and exciting product concepts. Dare Foods Limited has seven factories in Canada and the US and its cookies, candies, crackers and fine breads are sold throughout North America, in Mexico, Sweden, the Far East and over 25 other countries around the world.

Locally, Carl Dare has been an active member and supporter of many community organizations. He has served on the board of Waterloo College, now Wilfrid Laurier University, and he was a founding board member of the University of Waterloo. In 2007 he was granted an Honourary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Waterloo. He also served as President of the Kitchener YMCA and the Chicopee Ski Club.

Carl’s sons, Graham and Bryan Dare are both active members of the community, and Graham serves on the Board of Directors for the YMCA Endowment Foundation and Sunbeam Residential Development Centre.