Hillshire Farm is a brand of meat products marketed by Sara Lee and owned by Sara Lee The company was founded in 1934 and was purchased by Sara Lee in 1971. Friedrich (Fritz) Bernegger, born in Austria pioneered the business at the facility in New London, Wisconsin.Wisconsin Meat Industry Hall of Fame - Fritz and Armella Bernegger

Hillshire Farm's primary product is smoked sausage and Polska Kielbasa. The brand introduced smoked sausages to much of the general population of the US as a supermarket food and a nationally advertised food. Hillshire Farm sausages are about 2 feet long and horseshoe shaped (A common smoked sausage format, the shape coming from the sausage being draped over a pole or line for smoking). Currently Hillshire Farm offers 10 varieties of these sausages. They may be cooked whole or sliced and may be cooked almost any way.

Hillshire Farm has branched out into other products, many of which have eclipsed the smoked sausages.

• One of their best know products is Lit'l Smokies. Lit'l Smokies is a line of cocktail weenies, bite sized smoked sausages that are very popular as appetizers and party food.

• They also offer a line of deli-sliced meat for sandwiches, a line which now includes 40 products. Hillshire Farm was one of the earliest companies to offer deli-style meats (usually sliced thinner, and omitting meats such as Bologna or Pimento loaf, even though these products are commonly offered at delis. The price is also higher) in supermarket meat cases alongside traditional American sandwich meat.

• Hillshire recently introduced Link Sausages. These are meant to compete with popular "brats" and other sausages offered from companies such as Johnsonville Foods and includes bratwurst and "cheddar wurst" (a bratwurst with cheddar cheese inside) along with beef and Polska Kielbasa. Unlike some competitors, all of these sausages are smoked. Hillshire Farm does not offer fresh sausage.

• Hillshire Farm offers summer sausage mostly found during the holidays.

• Hillshire Farm also offers 10 different hams. All are traditional bone-in hams with 5 varieties, either unsliced or spiral sliced.

Hillshire Farm's traditional advertising campaign was similar to those from Pepperidge Farm and Hidden Valley Ranch, featuring traditional appearing farmers in an old time farm setting, extolling the vitues of Hillshire Farm sausage.

In recent years, Hillshire has focused more on advertising to men who grill. This is a direct response to Johnsonville Foods, who has been extremely successful at appealing to grillers and tailgaters. The current campaign is called "GO MEAT!" and has featured men in contiguous back yards doing football cheers about their Hillshire Farm sausage.

Hillshire Farm generally focuses on advertising on smoked sausage and links in the summer and fall. Then they switch to smokies and hams during the winter months.