Although the Givol Plant, located in the industrial area of Holon, is one of Osem’s smaller facilities, it is home to an Osem flagship item one of its oldest and most popular products–Bamba.

At this plant, almost all the production lines are dedicated to producing Bamba; Comix, Popco and sweet Bamba are produced here as well. The Visitors’ Center on site at the plant hosts mainly children, introducing them to the food industry in general, and the Bamba plant in particular.

It is impossible to miss the Bamba plant in Holon. The distinctive aroma of Bamba wafts through the air, and the Bamba Baby smiles down from its post at the gate to the plant, leaving passersby in no doubt that this is the production plant for the much-loved, most highly sought after, best-selling snack in Israel.

The plant did not enjoy a very promising start back in 1963. Initially, Bamba was produced as a puffed, corn snack with an aromatic cheesy coating; but this flavor that was very popular in the U.S. was simply not to the liking of the Israeli palette. At Osem, they solved this problem by replacing the cheesy flavor with peanut butter, and all the rest is history.

Bamba has a history of flavors and textures that has become an inseparable part of childhood memories for almost every child in Israel, and a history of dizzying marketing success that has built up and flourished over the years.

Bamba started out in the Israeli army canteen service and in the 1967 Six Day War. The soldiers welcomed this snack enthusiastically and took it home with them at the end of the war. From this point on, Bamba became a snack for the whole family.

The Givol Plant complies with ISO 9002 and the entire production department is completely automated. A total of six production lines operate at the plant to produce Bamba, red Bamba, Popco, and Comix, and two production lines are dedicated to the production of Osem’s leading snack – the regular classic Bamba.

Production begins with corn grits which are loaded into a machine where they undergo a special high-pressure process to convert them into white, puffed, unflavored Bamba shapes. The unflavored Bamba is transferred to storage containers and from there it goes to drying chambers which give it its crispy texture. The product undergoes the flavoring process when it reaches the coating drums. The coating, made mainly from peanut butter, also contains vitamins to give the product greater nutritional value. Of course the ingredients used in this product are totally natural.

Groups of school children learn about the Bamba manufacturing process and are shown around the production plant almost every day. For the children, the best part of the visit is usually the final stage . . . when they are given Bamba sample packs.