Otterbein’s Bakery, a Baltimore name going back to the 1800s, has closed its Windsor Mill factory after partnering with another local shop to make its signature crisp cookies.

A news release Friday afternoon characterized the move, first reported by The Baltimore Business Journal, as part of a yearslong effort to scale up production that began with a 2023 shift in packaging that would allow the sweets to travel and last longer.

“For decades, our reach was limited. Fragile packaging and a short shelf life meant that Otterbein’s Cookies were Baltimore’s best-kept secret — enjoyed only by those lucky enough to live within 60 miles of our hometown,“ said the news release. The family-owned business, now in its fifth generation, was founded in Baltimore by Adam Otterbein, a German immigrant, in 1881.

Change came when Smith Island Baking Company founder Brian Murphy approached general manager Ben Otterbein with an idea for improved packaging that would allow them to expand nationwide.

“We did a total brand refresh and we launched a year and a half ago,” said Murphy, who helped popularize the state’s official cake. “It’s been awesome.”

Soon after, Royal Farms expanded its sales of Otterbein’s cookies to stores up and down the East Coast, and Costco began carrying them in 2024. Otterbein’s is in talks with distributors across the country as well as with the U.S. Navy, which is looking to bring the cookies to service members deployed around the globe, according to the release.

But the surging demand has required the company to scale up production, and the company decided to team up with “a state-of-the-art local bakery that had the exact same equipment as ours — only newer, larger, and built for the future,” Murphy said.

The shift happened last year, and customers haven’t noticed the difference, said Murphy. “Quite literally it is the exact same recipe with the same ingredients,” he said. “It is the same cookie.”

Equipment from Otterbein’s Bakery’s Windsor Mill facility, including prep tables, commercial ovens and mixing bowls, is up for auction online. Murphy said there would be no layoffs, saying, “There’s no layoffs in growth.”

It’s not clear why Otterbein is opting to keep the identity of their partner a secret, and Murphy declined to name them. But it is the Greater Baltimore area.

“We love being a Baltimore company, we just to make sure the rest of the country knows how great these cookies are,” Murphy said.