The subject of today’s post is Kraft. I added this company to my list of Great American Brands because I used their products it as a child, as a mother, and now as an empty nester.
As I write about each brand on my list, it is interesting to note the role of brand loyalty combined with advertising that keeps the brand going. The ad you see is for one of Kraft’s old margarine products. It appeared in the September 1959 edition of Woman’s Day magazine.
The catchy name of the product Miracle Margarine promised both economy and reduced calories. Margarine was a big deal in the mid-century. It was a product in every one’s refrigerator. I remember using sticks of margarine to make cookies as a teenager. For some reason, it was unheard of to have real butter in those days.
Here’s another Kraft margarine ad for their Parkay Brand. This product was said to be perfect for spreading butter on bread. It is from 1952.
Smooth Spreading Parkway – Guaranteed Fresh
Parkay had a more memorable ad campaign later in the century that had a talking tub of margarine that teased the user into thinking it was butter.
Next on the list of Kraft products is Philadelphia cream cheese. Although infrequently, it is a product that I have used throughout my life when a recipe calls for cream cheese. The early ad appeared in the May 1946 edition of Ladies Home Companion.
Fresh Idea for Dessert – Just crackers and jelly and a generous portion of this rich, fresh-tasting cream cheese
What kid doesn’t like Kraft Mac & Cheese? According to Kraft, they currently sell one million boxes of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese daily.
Here are 2 Macaroni and Cheese ads.
Kraft stuck with their classic tall rectangle box for their packaging. However, in June of this year, they announced a change to the box branding.
Speaking of manufactured cheese, here’s a 1963 ad for Velveeta “Cheese Spread”.
Another American kid’s classic is a PBJ sandwich. This ad is from 1964.
Until now, I didn’t realize that Kraft no longer sold their jam/jelly product in grocery stores. Of course, Amazon sells everything. Check out this super expensive Kraft Jelly on Amazon. What?
On to salad dressings. here are 2 sixties ads for Kraft Salad dressings.
This is one of my favorite over-the-top ads. Who doesn’t like a “head of lettuce”?
Like the other American Brands companies we’ve looked at this month, Kraft foods has a long history of mergers and acquisitions. Today, the multi-national food conglomerate company that still sells many of the products featured on this post is officially called Kraft Heinz company.
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