Goldens’ Foundry jumps into cooking market with cast iron cooker made in America
The design and testing phases are over for Goldens’ Foundry in Columbus. Now, the company that dates to 1882 is ready to roll out a new outdoor cooking product — a cast iron cooker — that it thinks ultimately will be a sizzling heirloom passed down from one generation to another.
“Goldens’ is thrilled to bring cast iron durability to the cooker market,” said Ed Boyd Sr., vice president of operations at the foundry located at 600 12th St. in Columbus, where the cookers are being manufactured. “Everyone knows that cast iron is a superior cookware material. Now, that strength and quality, made here in America, are available for outdoor chefs.”
The company has at least 50 of the oval-shaped, black powder-coated cookers in its inventory because it is guaranteeing that the first 50 people who purchase one by Tuesday will have them in time for Christmas. The offer, available only to residents in Georgia and Alabama, includes delivery, assembly and installation at no extra charge.
The price tag on the cookers are $950, plus tax, and can be purchased on the Goldens’ website. For $1,350, plus tax, a heavy-duty stand is included.
Those not living in Georgia and Alabama, but are interested in buying a cooker, are advised to leave their email so they can be contacted as distribution to retail dealers develops.
Goldens’ is marketing the product’s strength and durability, saying it can “weather any storm and stand the test of time. Positioned as a heirloom product, customers are encouraged to look at the cookers as something to pass down from generation to generation.”
Anyone who wants a look at one of the Golden’s cast iron cookers might stop by at one of the Country’s Barbecue restaurants in Columbus. The company said Country’s will have one of the units on display, with a cook-off event scheduled 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Dec. 18-19 at all locations, during which food prepared using the cookers will be available.
Jim Morpeth, a local restaurant icon of sorts who founded Country’s on Mercury Drive in 1975, said he’s used the Goldens’ cooker and is proud to help promote it.
“I’ve cooked steaks at 600 degrees and smoked ribs at 250 degrees,” he said. “It’s a great cooker that handles all types of cooking and it’s made right here in Columbus, Ga.”
The Boyd family is the fifth generation to operate Goldens’ Foundry. They plan to stay in contact with the “First Fifty” group of customers who buy the cookers to share in their experiences with the product.
This retail venture aside, Goldens’ Foundry’s cores business is manufacturing components used in various industries and markets, including construction equipment, heavy duty trucks, farm machinery and equipment, pumps compressors and valves, materials handling equipment, railroad rolling stock, oil and gas field equipment, industrial power drives and gear, and roadway and bridge construction.
The company also operates a manufacturing plant in Cordele, Ga.
This story was originally published December 11, 2015 at 4:03 PM.