Our Story

About Festa Foods

From Cleveland to the Stars—And Everywhere In Between
In 1993, Tim Fagan founded Pinata Foods in Cleveland, Ohio, with a straightforward mission: become the manufacturing partner that organizations trust when nutrition specifications matter. What started as a private label tortilla and burrito manufacturer quickly evolved into something bigger.

Our commitment to precision nutrition caught NASA’s attention. In 1999, we delivered the first burrito to space—providing high-protein meals to astronauts aboard the International Space Station. We returned to the ISS in 2003, 2007, and 2013. When NASA needs meals that meet exacting standards 250 miles above Earth, they call Cleveland.

That same precision is in every product we manufacture today. Over three decades, we’ve built deep expertise serving populations with specialized dietary needs: students in school cafeterias, service members on military bases, patients managing chronic conditions, and consumers seeking cleaner frozen food options.

For over a quarter-century, the Fagan family evolved Festa from a burrito company into a full-scale flexible manufacturing operation. Today, we produce nutritionally dense breakfast and entrée meals, healthy handheld foods, and medically tailored meals—all using clean ingredients and manufacturing capabilities that adapt to your specifications.

In November 2025, Festa Holdings acquired the company, bringing new investment and leadership to accelerate our growth. We’re expanding our capabilities in the food-as-medicine market while continuing to serve the institutional, retail, and foodservice partners who have trusted us for decades.

Same Cleveland roots. Same manufacturing excellence. A bigger vision for the future.

Our Journey

1993
Founded in Cleveland as Pinata Foods, producing authentic burritos and tortillas for private label partners
1990s
Expanded into schools, military, and government institutional foodservice
1999
First burrito in space: NASA selects Festa for International Space Station meals
2003-2013
Return trips to the ISS, cementing our reputation for precision manufacturing
2010s
Evolution to clean-label manufacturing, expanded product lines and dietary capabilities
2020s
Pioneering medically tailored meals for leading healthcare providers
2025
Festa Holdings acquisition positions company for continued growth across all channels

What Sets Us Apart

  •  30+ Years of Manufacturing Excellence: We’ve been doing this longer than most—and it shows in every production run
  • Clean Label Commitment: Real ingredients, no artificial anything—across every product line
  • Flexible Production: Small batch pilot runs to high-volume national distribution—we scale with you
  • Space-Tested Quality: If it’s good enough for NASA, it’s good enough for your customers
  • Specialized Diet Expertise: USDA school specs, military nutrition, therapeutic diets—we meet the requirements others can’t

Our Mission & Vision

MISSION STATEMENT

Festa Foods is the flexible manufacturing partner for organizations that need precision nutrition at scale. We leverage 30+ years of expertise to produce clean-label frozen meals that meet exact dietary specifications—for schools, military, healthcare providers, retail brands, and every population in between.

VISION STATEMENT

To be America’s most trusted manufacturer of specialized frozen meals—known for our flexibility, quality, and ability to meet any dietary requirement our partners bring to us.