Our Heritage

For over 100 years, Leggo’s has helped teach Kiwis how to create, share and enjoy simple Italian food. Our Authentic ingredients and recipes have inspired Kiwi cooks to prepare Italian food their way. This passion for simple, great food is one that continues to drive us today.

Our commitment to authentic and simple Italian food dates back to our founder Henry Madren Leggo. In 1882 at the tender age of 13, Henry took a job with a local grocer in the Victorian gold mining town of Bendigo. Outside work, he also sold his mother’s own bottled tomato sauce and pickles direct to the hungry miners in their camps. With an appetite for hard work, 6 years later Henry bought the grocery business and began producing vinegar, pickles, sauces, cordials and other grocery goods based on his mother’s traditional recipes.

Henry’s quest to source only the freshest and best quality ingredients saw Leggo’s awarded first, second and third prizes and Champion gold medals for his Tomato sauces at the Bendigo Show in 1925 and 1926. This pursuit for excellence underpins our approach today and is the reason why Leggo’s has set the standard by which tomato produce is still judged.

Our Tomato Paste is at the heart of everything we do and is the source of our most admired recipes.