Terra Mills

Terra Mills is a major food production company based on Terra.

History
Terra Mills is the result of the 2717 merger of Bremen Mills and Terragra.

Bremen Mills
Bremen Mills was founded in the 27th century on Rytif, after the outbreak of the 2nd Tevarin War. The UEE Navy helped to develop the previous small agrarian planet, to 'feed their largest ever fighting force of starmen to date.' Farmers on Rytif began to pool their resources. De facto Govenor Arcuturus Koerner and other major landholders banded together to form the Bremen Mills collective, which helped them to cut costs and increasing their profits.

The growth was slowed down by a grain market crash in 2640 on Rytif and the Great Stalford Disaster in 2716 'which burned tens of thousands of cultivated acres.'

Merger with Terragra
Terragra was founded in 2665 on Terra and produced 'salty and sweet snacks', the most popular of them was Prallies. The company wanted to expand, but couldn't find an affordable source of wheat to support their growth. It merged with Bremen Mills to form Terra Mills in 2717.

As Terra Mills
In 2949 Prasad Naturals filed a lawsuit against a new law in the Bremen system, which cuts the system export tax on processed food. Prasad claimed that Terra Mills colluded with politicians to manipulate the market in their favour.

Products and Brands
Terra Mills owns the following brands:
 * Dappers, cereals
 * Maybelles, perennial holiday cookies
 * Pips, soda drinks
 * Fieldsbury, beverage
 * Clash, beverage
 * Braga Malt (or Snazzle), a malted fruit drink
 * Big Benny's, noodles

Pips
Pips is a line of soft drinks popular throughout the empire. It is served in cans of different flavors, available from vending machines or local eateries.

Big Benny's
The most recent addition to the Terra Mills family may be their most audacious yet. After conquering snacks and drinks, they have decided to pursue a position in the fast meals sector. In 2943, they purchased a small restaurant franchise from Lo that, since its opening three years prior, had gone from a single location to over a hundred.

Benicio Lewis, Jr. had grown up on a fringe transfer station in Corel eating his father's homemade kacho, a ramen-like combination of noodles and broth that was heavily spiced to combat the taste bud numbing that occurs with long exposure to pressurized environments. As Lewis quoted his father, "If I have to live in a tin can, I'm sure as hell not going to eat food that tastes like it came from one." Years later when living on Lo, Little Benny himself made kacho for his friends, who began to rave to their friends. Their encouragement convinced him to open up a small stall at a commercial spaceport. He named his foodstall Big Benny's in honor of his father. With its cheap and satisfying fare, the stand was crowded all the time.

From that humble beginning, Lewis quickly opened new franchises as the "kacho kraze" spread like wildfire. It wasn't long before he was approached by Terra Mills with an offer to introduce his kacho from Lo to the rest of the universe. Despite protests from the franchise's loyal fans, Lewis was happy to sell, explaining, "My dad would have loved to know that people across the 'verse can have something good to eat when they need it. Plus, he loved making money." Today, Big Benny's stalls and vending units can be found everywhere people are looking to stretch their credits and eat a warm meal.

To the surprise of no one, Terra Mills is not stopping there. With one successful ready meal launch under their belt, they recently revealed their newest brand, TipTop, at the 2946 Vendor Association Conference. Offering a variety of bite-sized tapioca-wrapped dumplings, TipTop is anticipated to soon be as ubiquitous as the Mills' other creations.

As a result of these successes, Terra Mills continues to be the largest employer in the Bremen system and it shows no sign of slowing down. What started out as a collection of farms has grown into one of the biggest food manufacturers in the Empire, with products that can be found in every system where Humans live.