As a result, the modern history of the firm emphasizes the cheese history. In , the company began marketing by radio sponsorship. Product development and advertising helped the company to grow during the postwar years, launching sliced process cheese and Cheez Whiz, a brand of process cheese sauce, in the s. In the s, product development became intense, launching fruit jellies, fruit preserves, marshmallows, barbecue sauces and Kraft Singles , a brand of individually wrapped cheese slices.
During this decade, the company also expanded in many markets worldwide. In , the firm acquired Dominion Dairies of Canada, marking the first effort by the firm to expand into fluid milk and ice cream outside the United States. In , the firm changed its name from National Dairy to Kraftco Corporation.
In , its name changed to Kraft, Inc. Reorganization also occurred after the name change. Premark was bought by Illinois Tool Works in In , Kraft sold Duracell to private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, who then put it into an initial public offering in Gillette [4] bought Duracell in , and itself was acquired by Procter and Gamble in Its aggressive product development was reversed after the merger, as it became slow in addressing issues on its product lines due to its size, and also company politics.
In , the company acquired Jacobs Suchard a European coffee and confectionery giant and Freia Marabou a Scandinavian confectionery maker to expand overseas as its business was heavily dependent on the U. In , it sold its frozen dinners unit to H. Heinz and in , it sold its foodservice unit. In , it changed its name to Kraft Foods Inc. Log Cabin syrup was sold in Kraft began a major restructuring process in January , following a year of declining sales blamed largely on the rising health consciousness of Americans and the sacking of co-CEO Betsy Holden.
During the Great Depression in the s, Heinz became a top-seller in ready-to-eat meals and baby food under the leadership of Howard Heinz, Henry Heinz's son.
During World War II, Heinz provided food aid to the United Kingdom and then expanded its international presence with new plants in several countries in the post-war years. Two years later, the investors pursued the massive merger with Kraft Foods Group. Kraft, who started a wholesale door-to-door cheese business in Chicago with his brothers.
They incorporated it in By , J. Kraft and Bros. Company was selling 31 varieties of cheese, and in it patented a pasteurized processed cheese that gave cheese a longer shelf life. Meanwhile, a company called National Dairy Products Corporation was aggressively acquiring dozens of small dairy products companies throughout the U.
National Dairy changed its name to Kraftco Corp. Philip Morris then acquired Nabisco Holdings in and integrated the companies into Kraft General Foods, which it began to sell off in Through the share sales, Kraft Foods Inc.
Then in , Kraft Foods divided into two: a U. It was an independent public company listed on the Nasdaq exchange for about four years before merging with H. Heinz Company in , creating the third-largest foods company in North America. Today's Kraft Heinz Co. Post was an outspoken critic of closed shops and labor unions, spending thousands on advertisements attacking organized labor. This crusade against unions resulted in occasional boycotts of Post products and incurred the personal enmity of union organizers throughout the nation.
Carroll Post once told an interesting tale about his brother Charles in a letter. One day the two Post brothers sat at a lunchroom counter where two brands of corn flakes--Post Toasties and Krinkle--were for sale. While the two men were eating, a railroad worker came in and asked for corn flakes. When the waitress asked which brand he wanted, the man said, "give me Krinkle. That man Post is always fighting our union. Despite Post's stance against organized labor, the Postum Cereal Company did not have trouble with labor in its own factories.
It paid the highest wages in the industry, emphasized safe working conditions, and implemented accident and sickness benefit programs. The company also built about homes for its workers which were sold on very favorable terms. In May , Charles W. Post committed suicide at his winter home in Santa Barbara, California. The day-to-day operations of the Postum Cereal Company had been run by a group of managers--C.
Upon his death, Post's daughter, Marjorie Merriwether Post, took over the company and helped launch the expansion that would create the company known as General Foods. Marjorie Post was well acquainted with the Postum business. She had often accompanied her father on business trips and frequently sat in on meetings.
In she married Edward F. Hutton, an investment broker. Two years later the Postum Cereal Company went public, and Marjorie Post stepped down from active management of the company. Her husband, who became chairman of the company in , and Colby M. Chester, who became president in , ran the company's day-to-day operations.
Marjorie remained a key policymaker, however, and was critical to the company's acquisition strategy and transition into General Foods. That transition began in with the acquisition of the Jell-O Company. Before frozen pies, cakes, and novelties entered the market, Jell-O was the premier dessert brand.
In the company absorbed Swans Down cake flour and Minute tapioca. Baker's coconut, Baker's chocolate, and Log Cabin syrup were acquired in The company also shortened its name to Postum Company that year. When asked if he wanted a second cup of coffee, Roosevelt answered, "Yes, indeed, it's good to the last drop.
Birdseye perfected new techniques for freezing vegetables and meat. An adventurer by nature, Birdseye had gotten the idea for his freezing technique while on an expedition to Labrador. Birdseye noted that the Eskimos routinely froze caribou and fish, and that these products retained their flavor even when stored for months before thawing. He hypothesized that the bitterly cold air contributed to fresh taste and this method might be superior to the commonly practiced slower freezing.
Birdseye returned in to begin research and eventually perfected a process that could be used commercially. Marjorie Merriwether Post had noticed Birdseye's operations in , but it took her three more years to convince Postum executives to acquire the company. The price had increased tenfold in that time, but Postum nevertheless happily acquired the company. The enlarged Postum Company also adopted the name General Foods Corporation in , and Clarence Birdseye became head of the new General Foods laboratory, where he continued his work on frozen foods.
While the Great Depression affected all parts of the economy, food was a relatively stable industry. After record profits in , General Foods spent its energy in on consolidating its recent acquisitions. As a result, earnings dropped slightly that year. In the company acquired the remaining 49 percent of General Foods.
It expanded quickly, adding six new plants that year to freeze nearly different products. General Foods had been distributing Sanka since through an agreement with the company's European owners. In , however, they began to rise again as consumer purchasing power strengthened.
In E. Hutton resigned as chairman of the company and C. Chester assumed the post, where he remained until Marjorie Post returned to the company as a director the next year, a position she retained until During World War II, General Foods, like other food companies, achieved record sales, despite food shortages and other wartime exigencies.
Sales in were more than double those of During the war, the company's Denver plant produced ten-in-one rations for the U. General Foods also began developing an instant coffee for the army in In General Foods acquired the Gaines Dog Food Company, and the next year it added Yuban premium coffee to its already strong coffee line. Instant Maxwell House coffee--one of the first postwar consumer products--was introduced in Perkins manufactured a variety of powdered beverage mixes to which the consumer added sugar and water for a fruit-flavored drink.
Kool-Aid has been a favorite of kids across the nation ever since. Years later General Foods added a number of other products to its beverage division, including Tang, Country Time, and sugar free Crystal Light.
In the company entered the salad dressing market with its purchase of the Hollywood manufacturer 4 Seasons, Inc. Acquisitions of established companies continued as General Foods diversified outside of the food industry. In the company bought the SOS Company, a leading scouring-pad manufacturer. Ten years later, however, the Federal Trade Commission ruled that the acquisition violated antitrust laws and forced General Foods to sell the company.
The following year, toy company Kohner Brothers and the nation's largest seed company, W. Atlee Burpee Company, were both acquired. Because General Foods did not have as much luck with its nonfood subsidiaries as it did with food businesses, it disposed of most of them. Kohner Brothers was sold to Gabriel Industries after just five years; the Viviane Woodard cosmetics business was closed in ; Burpee was sold in ; and, after consistently losing money, the Burger Chef chain was sold in In the late s and early s General Foods aggressively branched out into international markets.
In the company acquired a controlling interest in the La India Company, Venezuela's number one chocolate company. In the company's Canadian subsidiary purchased the Hostess snack-food company of Canada; in it purchased the Kibon ice cream company of Brazil and the French coffee-roaster Etablessements Pierre Lemonnier S.
Numerous other food processors throughout the world were purchased as well. By the mids General Foods was an established giant in the industry. Chairman C. Cook, who took over in , ran a company whose outstanding successes were based on new product development, sweeping market research, and enormous advertising budgets. During the s international acquisitions continued at a furious pace, but domestic operations settled down a bit.
Frozen foods became increasingly popular as more double-income families found less time to cook and had extra cash for quick meals. The company's BirdsEye frozen-food division also enjoyed a boost in earnings.
But not all of General Foods units benefited from such favorable demographic changes. Jell-O, for example, suffered as new products such as frozen novelty desserts came to the market. In the Jell-O unit pushed to recapture the dessert market, employing an advertising campaign to reverse Jell-O's steady decline. Wilson, with additional contributions from Stephen R. Porter and Janice L. All Rights Reserved.
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