About Us
We are dedicated to crafting the most innovative, high-quality value-added products on the market, backed up by unmatched customer service. We believe that putting the customers’ needs above all else will help ensure a bright future for our foodservice partners, our business, and most importantly, our employees and stakeholders.
In 1974 Watkins Associated Industries purchased Tampa Maid Sea Products, a small shrimp packer based in Tampa, Florida. At 
the time, the company processed about 10,000 pounds weekly of various commodity and value-added shrimp and seafood products. Procuring domestic raw shrimp along the Gulf Coast through company-owned waterfront facilities from Key West to Brownsville, Texas, Tampa Maid flourished and expanded the Tampa processing facility several times.
In 1987 Tampa Maid purchased a seafood specialty company, Bayou Foods, from General Mills and brought the renowned Cap’n Joe brand of crab specialty items to the product lineup.
Tampa Maid purchased a competitor, Bee Gee Shrimp, in 1997 and moved operations from Tampa to the acquired company’s processing facility in Lakeland, Florida.
In 2006, Tampa Maid acquired Cox’s Wholesale Seafood, an esteemed supplier of domestic wild-caught Key West pink shrimp to the retail and foodservice markets. Working together under common ownership, Tampa Maid and Cox’s offer both domestically sourced and imported seafood offerings for the marketplace.
In 2008, Tampa Maid became the exclusive licensee for Margaritaville® brand seafood, which we source, process and market to retail groceries and club stores nationwide.
In 2012, Tampa Maid expanded our product portfolio and launched Harvest 
Creations®, our signature brand of farm-fresh breaded vegetables that utilizes our years of experience in coating quality food products.
In fall 2019, we opened the George Watkins Innovation Center after three years of planning: an R&D and culinary facility created to better respond to the changing needs of the food industry and innovate for the future.
Today, we are still owned by Watkins Associated Industries, a family-owned, U.S. company. WAI is a highly successful business composed of trucking, food processing, building materials and real estate development. This privately held corporation is in its third generation of Watkins family management. Our family management creates a special culture throughout the organization and instills a sense of pride in our employees that shows through in the products and services we provide for our customers.
Tampa Maid Foods is in the business of sourcing, processing and marketing high-quality value-added food products from around the world to the foodservice and retail markets. Tampa Maid’s primary expertise is in coated products. We have world-class product development, as well as processing capabilities to coat seafood and farm-fresh products utilizing the full spectrum of available coating formulas. From breadcrumbs and cracker meals to flours and batters, as well as flavor-infused glazes, Tampa Maid specializes in making products that taste great and are easy to prepare.
Our U.S.-based, state-of-the-art facility is dedicated to processing, product development and storage. We subscribe to several inspection services such as the AIB. (American Institute of Baking) and BRC (British Retail Consortium), which help ensure our adherence to high standards of good manufacturing practices, sanitation and overall food safety.
We source both commodity and value-added seafood products from our supplier partners worldwide. We require our suppliers to meet the same stringent standards for food quality and product safety that we have set for our own manufacturing facilities. In addition to our specifications, standards and inspections, these supplier facilities must also meet the requirements of recognized third-party food-safety audits.
The health of our oceans is of great importance to Tampa Maid. Ocean Trust is recognized as a premier organization for understanding, maintaining and restoring the world’s fisheries. As a strong supporter of Ocean Trust, we are working to better understand the status of our source fisheries and ways to ensure the protection and sustainability of the ocean-caught and aquaculture seafood we process and market to the industry. Sustainability of our food supply requires the preservation of natural resources of wild-caught species, and ensuring that aquaculture can indefinitely continue production without harm to the environment and its ecosystems. Tampa Maid has partnered with suppliers and organizations with these same concerns and goals in mind.
Tampa Maid has over 40 years commitment to food safety, quality and service. The programs we have in place ensure that all of our products are processed with highest standards for quality and food safety in mind.
- All of our products are made with wholesome, quality ingredients.
- All plants are HACCP approved.
- Tampa Maid’s U. S. plant has several third-party food-safety audits annually and is certified by the BRC (British Retail Consortium) a premier worldwide food safety organization.
- All foreign plants are third-party audited and many are BRC and BAP certified.
- Tampa Maid monitors all daily foreign & U.S. production QA reports on sanitation, GMPs, microbiological & drug testing, raw material and finished goods.
- All finished goods and raw materials have full traceability.