CHICAGO — Tennessee Bun Co., a manufacturer and innovator in the wholesale baking, frozen dough and storage industries, has joined The Long Co.

“We welcome them and look forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship,” said Bill Zimmerman, president and chief executive officer of The Long Co.

After operating several McDonald’s restaurant franchises in downstate Illinois, Cordia W. Harrington founded Tennessee Bun in 1997 with a hamburger bun plant at Dickson, Tenn., as a single-source baker for McDonald’s. In addition to Dickson, the company now operates both a bread and cake plant and a frozen dough facility in Nashville. The company has annual sales of approximately $50 million, according to the 2013 Directory & Buyers Guide published by Sosland Publishing Co.

William Edgar Long began his career by counseling wholesale bakers with their advertising and sales promotions. Mr. Long later created what is called The Long Co., an independent bakers cooperative dedicated to assisting its members in the management of every facet of their bakery operations and to manage profitably. The Long Co. has been a consultant to the food industry since 1900.