american pie council

What american pie council does

The American Pie Council (APC) is a non-profit international association founded in 1995 and based in Lake Forest, Illinois, dedicated to preserving pie culture and connecting amateur, professional, and commercial pie makers. The organization operates an integrated offering anchored by the National Pie Championships®, an annual competition hosted at the Caribe Royale Hotel in Orlando, FL since 1995 (the 29th edition took place April 8-9, 2026), and the Great American Pie Festival. APC also created and promotes National Pie Day on January 23 and supports Pi Day on March 14 as recurring consumer engagement moments. Membership is structured in three tiers: Amateur ($55 lifetime), Professional ($75/year), and Commercial (annual, volume-tiered based on pie sales up to $15M+).

APC's revenue model is diversified across membership dues (recurring subscription), championship entry fees (transactional), sponsorship from baking-industry suppliers such as Rich Products, Colborne Corporation, ACH Foodservice (Karo Syrup), Rise Baking Co., and Joy Baking Group (advertising/sponsorship), and quarterly newsletter advertising in Pie Times. Distribution is primarily direct via the piecouncil.org website (recipe database of 453+ award-winning recipes, Pie Directory of member businesses), in-person at the annual championships, and through owned social channels on Facebook and Instagram. The organization has no disclosed technology platform, no AI/ML capability, and no disclosed financial metrics; its competitive position rests on brand ownership of National Pie Day, the registered National Pie Championships® trademark, and its role as the sole non-profit international association for pie.

Name

american pie council

Legal name

American Pie Council

Website

https://piecouncil.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The American Pie Council is a non-profit association founded in 1995 that promotes pie culture through a tiered membership program, the annual National Pie Championships in Orlando, the Great American Pie Festival, National Pie Day (January 23), and a recipe database, serving amateur bakers, professional chefs, and commercial baking-industry suppliers across North America.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Culinary Association / Baking Industry Trade Association

NAICS

Baked Goods Retailers (445291)

SIC

Food And Kindred Products (2000)

akta.pro primary industry

Food, Wine & Beverage Festivals/Expos (MPAGAFAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Baking & Pastry Arts (EDAOAKAB)

Keywords

• Pie culture association
• Baking industry membership
• Culinary trade association
• Pie competitions
• Baking education resources

Headquarters

HQ city

Lake Forest

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Marketing or Sales, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual and lifetime membership fees from Amateur ($55 lifetime), Professional ($75/year), and Commercial members (based on pie sales tier).
2. Event Revenue: Entry fees for National Pie Championships competitions across commercial, professional, and amateur categories.
3. Newsletter Advertising: Pie Times quarterly newsletter features advertising opportunities for members.
4. Sponsorships: Event and championship sponsorships from industry partners including Karo Syrup, ABA, BEMA, and other baking industry suppliers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The American Pie Council is a non-profit international association that preserves America's pie heritage and promotes pie culture through a three-tier membership program (Amateur, Professional, Commercial), the annual National Pie Championships competition, the Great American Pie Festival, a quarterly Pie Times newsletter, and a public recipe database of 453+ award-winning pie recipes. The organization also promotes National Pie Day (January 23) and Pi Day (March 14) as consumer celebrations of pie.

Product overview

The American Pie Council is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving America's pie heritage and promoting the love of pie. The organization operates a single integrated offering centered around pie culture, primarily through its annual National Pie Championships competition, a three-tier membership program (Amateur, Professional, and Commercial), and an extensive recipe database containing 453+ award-winning recipes. Additional offerings include the Pie Times quarterly newsletter, the Great American Pie Festival, and the APC Pie Directory for member business discovery. The organization was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Lake Forest, Illinois.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• National Pie Championships®: Annual pie competition hosted by APC since 1995 for amateur, professional and commercial pie bakers.
• Great American Pie Festival™
• Pie Times

Products and services

• National Pie Championships APC's flagship annual pie competition event recognizing quality pie manufacturers and bakers across amateur, professional, and commercial categories; open to participants from throughout North America and held in Orlando, FL.
• APC Membership Program Three-tier paid membership program with Amateur ($55 lifetime for home bakers earning under $500 from pie activity), Professional ($75/year for bakers and chefs earning $500+ from pie sales), and Commercial (annual, scaled by pie sales from under $250K to over $15M) tiers; benefits include NPC entry discounts, Pie Times newsletter subscription, networking, brand showcasing, and directory listing.
• Pie Times Newsletter Exclusive quarterly members-only newsletter delivering baking industry information, pie trends, and updates from the pie world; available to all APC members.
• Great American Pie Festival Annual festival held in Orlando alongside the National Pie Championships celebrating American pie culture, heritage, and community.
• Recipe Database Public recipe resource containing 453+ award-winning pie recipes from competition winners spanning 2014 to 2026, organized by flavor categories including Apple, Chocolate, Citrus, Cream, Fruit/Berry, Nut, Pumpkin, Key Lime, Peanut Butter, and Savory.
• APC Pie Directory Searchable online directory enabling pie lovers to locate APC member businesses and commercial pie makers; serves as a discovery and lead-generation channel for Commercial and Professional members.

Quantifiable outcome

• 78% of consumers love or like pie according to Datassential 2022 survey
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• ABA (American Bakers Association)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe voice of the baking industry since 1897, offering advocacy, thought leadership, and research on industry trends. ABA members benefit from networking events, knowledge sharing, and workforce development programs.
• BEMA (Baking Equipment Manufacturers Association)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational non-profit trade association representing leading bakery and food equipment manufacturers and suppliers, driving research and development for the baking industry.
• Sosland PublishingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBusiness-to-business trade publishing company focused on delivering indispensable content to the food industry. Produces Baking & Snack, Milling & Baking and bake publications.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• American Bakers Association: The American Bakers Association (ABA) is the broader US baking industry trade association and an explicit APC partner. Both organizations operate on similar membership, advocacy, and event models but ABA spans the entire baking industry rather than focusing on pie.
• National Restaurant Association: The National Restaurant Association is the large, established trade association for the US restaurant industry with a membership-plus-flagship-event model. It is comparable as a much larger incumbent in a related (foodservice) category, with some overlapping members in commercial pie retail.

Others

• Baking Equipment Manufacturers Association (BEMA): BEMA is an international non-profit trade association representing bakery and food equipment manufacturers and suppliers, and an explicit APC sponsor/partner. BEMA is an adjacent industry enabler rather than a direct competitor, but shares the trade-association and event-driven model.
• Les Dames d'Escoffier: Les Dames d'Escoffier is an international non-profit of women in the culinary and hospitality industries. It is comparable to APC as a culinary non-profit that supports professional bakers and chefs via networking, awards, and educational programming.

Direct peers

• Retail Bakers of America: Retail Bakers of America is a US trade association serving retail bakery owners and cake decorators. It is the most directly comparable peer in mission and member profile, focusing on a slice of the same small/retail bakery ecosystem APC's professional and amateur tiers address.
• National Confectioners Association: The National Confectioners Association is the leading trade association for the US candy and confectionery industry. It is highly comparable as a category-specific non-profit trade association with a multi-tier membership, sponsored events, and consumer-facing cultural activations (similar to National Pie Day).
• Specialty Food Association: The Specialty Food Association is a non-profit trade organization representing specialty food makers, retailers, and foodservice, with a comparable membership-plus-event business model (e.g., the Fancy Food Shows). It is comparable as a peer food-category trade association with overlapping commercial bakery members.
• International Dairy Foods Association: IDFA represents the US dairy products industry through membership, advocacy, and events. While dairy-adjacent rather than direct overlap, IDFA is structurally one of the closest peers to APC in terms of non-profit trade association model, multi-tier membership, and consumer-facing category marketing.
• International Cake, Baking & Decoration Industry Association: ICBDIA is an international trade association serving cake decorators and baking professionals, with a niche trade-show and membership model. It is comparable to APC as a small, category-specific baking trade body, though with a cake/decoration emphasis rather than pie.

Emerging players

• James Beard Foundation: The James Beard Foundation is a non-profit culinary organization that celebrates American food culture through awards and programming. It is comparable to APC as a culture-promoting food non-profit that builds category prestige via recognition (similar to APC's pie championships and awards).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/americanpiecouncil
• Instagraminstagram.com/apcpie
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-american-pie-council

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about american pie council