Krispy Kreme, owner of a Panera Bread admits the family ties of the Nazi family

March 26, 2019, 13:36 GMT / Update March 26, 2019, 13:54 GMT

By Minyvonne Burke and Associated Press

The family, which owns several well-known companies, including Krispy Kreme Donuts and Panera Bread, learned that their ancestors supported Adolf Hitler and used Russian civilians and French prisoners of war as forced laborers to work in their factory.

The claims against the Reimann family were made Sunday in a four-page report published by the German tabloid Bild, and confirmed by spokesman Peter Harf's family.

"We were ashamed," Harf told the store in an interview published Tuesday that was translated into English. "These crimes are disgusting."

According to Bild, documents discovered in Germany, France and the United States reveal that Albert Reimann's father and his son, Albert Reimann Jr., used forced labor under the Nazis during the Second World War to work in their homes. industrial chemicals business.

It is unclear how many workers were used, but Bild reported in 1943 that they made up about 30% of the factory workforce.

Harf, who is one of the two managing partners of Reimann's holding company JAB Holding, told Bild that the claims were "all right". Harf did not immediately postpone NBC News's comment request.

He also said that the Reimann family had hired a historian professor at the University of Munich in 2014 to investigate their family's Nazi ties after discovering documents belonging to Reimann Sr., who died in 1954. Reimann Jr. died in 1984.

The teacher's findings were presented to Reimann's children, his grandson and Harf a few weeks ago, and were "in line" with Bild's report, Harf said.

The family has announced plans to donate $ 11.3 million to a charity, but has not yet decided which one. She will also publish a book containing the professor's conclusions.

JAB Holding Company acquired Panera Bread in July 2017. JAB Beech Inc., an indirect controlled subsidiary of JAB Holding Company, acquired Krispy Kreme in May 2016.

In addition to Krispy Kreme Donuts and Panera Bread, Luxembourg-based JAB Holding Co. holds majority stakes in Keurig Green Mountain, Peet's Coffee & Tea, Caribou Coffee Co., Pret a Manger and other companies.

Many German companies have admitted to using slave labor during the Nazi period and have conducted their own independent investigations.