Lucius Hamilton Hayward founded L. H. Hayward & Company in 1923. L. H. was from Meridian, Miss. He moved his family to New Orleans around 1920 and established himself in business as a wholesale supplier of fresh fruits and vegetables. During the 1920's the company served the local grocery stores and the French Quarter markets with produce grown on farms in Louisiana and Mississippi. In 1947, Camellia Brand was trademarked and the first packaged products were introduced. Today, the company packages nineteen varieties of beans, peas and lentils in six different sizes ranging from one pound to one hundred pounds out of their Harahan, LA plant.