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Campbell's was
founded in 1869 by Joseph A. Campbell and Abraham Anderson, an icebox
manufacturer. The company was originally called the "Joseph A. Campbell
Preserve Company" and produced canned tomatoes, vegetables, jellies,
soups, condiments, and minced meats.
By 1896, Anderson left the partnership, leaving Campbell to reorganize
and form a new company, Joseph Campbell & Co. In 1897, a nephew of
one of the new Campbell partners, Dr. John T. Dorrance, began working
for the company at a wage of $7.50 a week. Dorrance, a gifted chemist
with degrees from MIT and Göttingen University, Germany, developed a
commercially viable method for condensing soup by halving the quantity
of its heaviest ingredient: water.
Soup was not a popular staple in the American diet at the turn of the
20th century, but it was in Europe. However, Dorrance's condensed soups
quickly became successful among the public for their convenience and
their price, 10 cents a can. The product competed at the Paris
Exposition in 1900 and was awarded a gold medal, an image of which
still appears on the label.
In 1898, Herberton Williams, a Campbell's executive, convinced the
company to adopt a cherry red and bright white color scheme, because he
was taken by the crisp colors of the Cornell University football team's
uniforms.To this day, the layout of the can, with its red and white
design and the metallic gold medal seal from the 1900 Paris Exhibition,
has changed very little.
Entrance to Campbell Soup headquarters in Camden
Campbell's Soup Cans by Andy Warhol, displayed in the Museum of Modern
Art, New York Campbell Soup became one of largest food companies in the
world under the leadership of William Beverly Murphy. He was elected
executive vice president of Campbell Soup in 1949 and was president and
CEO from 1953 to 1972. While at Campbell's Soup Company, he took the
corporation public and increased its brand portfolio to include
Pepperidge Farm's breads, cookies, and crackers, Franco-American's
gravies and pastas, V8 vegetable juices, Swanson broths, and Godiva's
chocolates.
Campbell Soup invested heavily in advertising since its inception, and
many of its promotional campaigns have proven value in the Americana
collectible advertising market. Perhaps best known are the "Campbell
Kids" who though color scheme represented the recognizable soup. Ronald
Reagan was a spokesman for V8 when it was first introduced. A "pretty
groovy deal" in 1968 offered a paper Souper Dress available for $1.00
and two labels. Also produced were Campbell's Menu Books and Help for
the Hostess series of cookbooks. One of the longest lasting recipes,
but certainly odd to modern tastebuds, is the recipe for a maroon
colored Tomato Soup Cake.
In addition to collectible advertising, the company has also had
notable commercial sponsorships. Among these was The Campbell
Playhouse, which had previously been Orson Welles' Mercury Theatre On
The Air. Campbell's took over as sponsor of the radio theatre program
in December of 1938.
In the UK and Ireland, the cans will be rebranded as Batchelors
Condensed Soup from March 2008(since the license for the brand name
expires in mid 2008) but labels will carry: "Formerly Campbell's. Same
great taste." Premier Foods, St. Albans, Hertfordshire bought Campbell
Soup Company in the UK and Ireland, for £ 450m ($ 830m), but not the
brand. 22 flavours will be branded as Batchelors but recipes will
remain the same. Also, US-based Campbell Soup Company will still
produce Campbell's Condensed Soup but cannot sell the product in the UK
for another 5 years. Over the years there was various flavors created
to eat at the table or to go.
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