Cryo-Trans, Lamb-Weston

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This page was last updated on April 10, 2026.

Lamb-Weston, Inc.

(Sources include a wide variety of internet searches, including current and abandoned websites at Archive.org. The focus of this page is to establish a timeline using sources not previously readily available.)

"Lamb-Weston started in Weston in 1905 when the Lamb family entered the fruit shipping business. Today's organization really started in 1939 when F. G. Lamb started to freeze strawberries for Klicker Brothers of Walla Walla. Increasing its freezing operations in 1942 put Lamb-Weston in the processing business, and in 1950 the company jumped ahead by purchase of the Eastern Oregon Canning Co. Lamb-Weston also has potato processing plants at Hermiston, Ore,; American Falls, Idaho, and Quincy and Connell, Wash. Amfac acquired Lamb-Weston in 1971." (Salem Oregon, Capital Press, October 26, 1973)

1950 -- F. Gilbert "Gib" Lamb purchased a defunct co-op plant in Weston, Oregon and incorporated as Lamb-Weston, Inc.

July 19, 1950
From The Oregonian, July 20, 1950.

Pea Canning Plant Bought. -- Purchase of the Eastern Oregon Canning company's pea-canning plant at Weston from the Reconstruction Finance corporation was announced Wednesday by the F. G. Lamb & Co., Freewater. Purchase price was in excess of $300,000. Canning and freezing operations will be conducted at the Weston plant under the name of Lamb-Weston, Inc., a subsidiary of F. G. Lamb & Co. Other officers of Lamb-Weston were Sidney B. Reese, vice president, and Reese Lamb, secretary-treasurer. Lamb frozen peas were marketed under the "Flav-R-Pac" label.

Purchase of the Weston plant would enable the new company to continue and expand its 'vining-at-the-plant' operation, which had proven to be the ideal method for obtaining high quality in pea freezing and canning.

The Weston plant was constructed in 1946, but ran into financial troubles and had not operated since 1948. It was rated in the industry as one of the most modern pea-canning plants in the country. Located in the center of 25,000 acres of high-yielding pea-growing land, the plant was equipped for a daily canned pack of 20,000 cases. It was to be converted for freezing in 1951, with equipment to be installed in time for the initial freezing operation on asparagus in April. Canned goods were also to be packed.

The Lambs continued to operate their present freezing plant at Freewater, and in the two operations expected to produce about 12,000,000 pounds of frozen peas annually, making them among the largest of independent packers.

Sale To Amfac (1971)

April 16, 1871
Amfac, Inc., of Honolulu, announced it would purchase Lamb-Weston, Inc. of Tigard, Oregon. (San Francisco Examiner, April 16, 1971, "today")

(Amfac, Inc. was a diversified conglomerate company owning companies spread across multiple industries and markets.)

(The agreement for the merger of the two companies was finalized on June 11, 1971. The stockholders approved the merger on August 23, 1971, and the merger was completed on August 26, 1971.)

Sale To ConAgra (1988)

April 6, 1988
From the Grand Island Independent, April 6, 1988.

ConAgra Inc.'s joint purchase of Lamb-Weston Inc. will enable the diversified food giant to expand into potato processing. Based in Omaha, ConAgra employs about 50,000 people at 1,000 locations across the nation and overseas. The largest flour miller in the United States and a major distributor of fertilizers and pesticides, ConAgra had $9 billion in sales for the fiscal year ending last May.

ConAgra and Golden Valley Microwave Foods of Minneapolis, Minn., have agreed to acquire Lamb-Weston from Amfac Inc. for $276 million. Each also will invest $25 million into the company. At present, ConAgra had no participation in the potato processing business. Lamb-Weston was important to give the company entry into the potato processing area. Portland-based Lamb-Weston was the largest processor of frozen potato products in the United States, a claim disputed by the J.R. Simplot Co., a major competitor.

April 22, 1991
Omaha-based ConAgra bought the 50 percent interest in Lamb-Weston, Inc., previously held by Edina, Minnesota-based Golden Valley Microwave Foods, giving ConAgra 100 percent ownership of Lamb-Weston. The two companies had jointly owned Lamb-Weston since 1988. At the same time, ConAgra bought the Golden Valley company. (Salem Oregon, Capitol Press, April 26, 1991)

In mid-1991, Lamb-Weston held 22 percent of the Washington potato processing business. J. R. Simplot held an equal 22 percent; Ore-Ida held 16 percent; Universal Frozen Foods held 12 percent; and Carnation held 10 percent. The remaining 18 percent was held by independent processors. The majority held by the top five companies consisted mainly of frozen potato products including french fries. (Spokane Spokesman, May 19, 1991)

By March 1993 Lamb-Weston was the largest frozen French fry producer in North America, producing 1.5 billion pounds annually. (Park Rapid, Minnesota, Enterprise, March 31, 1993)

In August 1994, Lamb-Weston, a subsidiary of ConAgra, purchased the assets of Universal Frozen Foods in Pasco and Hermiston, Oregon, and Twin Falls, Idaho. (Bellingham Herald, January 6, 1995)

Mechanical Refrigeration

(not cryogenic cars)

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Lamb-Weston leased a fleet of mechanical refrigerator cars from REMX Corporation. Numbered as REMX 1001–1183 (specifically 1003–1073 were observed with Lamb-Weston markings).

These cars were often painted pale blue and featured blue, green, and white Lamb-Weston logos.

REMX ceased operations around 1983, and many of these cars were returned to the Southern Pacific (SPFE).

Carl Shaver wrote about REMX cars in 2005:

One hundred eighty-four PFE reefers were transferred to the Packers Cold Storage Company in 1979. Some of these were repainted and renumbered into PCSX series 1001-1184; the paint scheme was pale green, with black data. They were stenciled R-70-19.

By the end of 1979, most of the PCSX cars had disappeared, and the REMX cars (series 1001-1183 began showing up). It seems likely that some cars went directly from PFE to REMX, and that the PCSX series was never filled.

The REMX cars actually had several paint schemes.

Pale blue, small white data, blue, green, and white Lamb-Weston markings: 1003-1073.
White, black data, the blue, green, black, and white REMX decal markings: 1076-1100, 1114-1174.
Orange, black data, large white reporting marks and numbers; no other markings: 1102-1110.

The REMX Corporation ceased operation in early 1983. Some cars were restored to their original numbers, but lettered SPFE instead of PFE. Most, however, were relettered SPFE and sequentially renumbered into the 351001-351183 series (eventually the ones that had gone back into the 456000 series were also renumbered to the 351000 series). Some were fully repainted into the white PFE paint scheme used by SP at the time; others only had the REMX logos obliterated. White, not tan, was always the correct color for these cars. Some of the SPFE, former REMX cars were sold to the Genesee & Wyoming Railroad (GNWR). Others were sold to San Luis Central (SLC) in 1986.

Cryogenic CO2 Cars

Starting in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Lamb-Weston became a major customer of moving frozen potato products in cryogenic CO2 refrigeration cars.

While these cars were dedicated to Lamb-Weston's service (moving frozen potato products like French fries), they carried the Lamb-Weston/ConAgra CAGX reporting mark.

In 2009, Cryo-Trans officially purchased the specific car fleet previously owned or dedicated to Lamb-Weston, integrating them into the CRYX 3300, 3400, and 3500 series.

Lamb-Weston Reporting Mark (CAGX)

(Read about the Lamb-Weston/ConAgra CAGX reporting mark)

More Information

(Lamb-Weston article at Wikipedia)

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