Oxo (food) - History

History

Concentrated meat extract was invented by Justus von Liebig around 1840 and commercialized by Liebig's Extract of Meat Company (Lemco) starting in 1866. The original product was a viscous liquid containing only meat extract and 4% salt. In comparison, the current version of the "OXO Chicken stock cube" contains only 2% chicken extract with the bulk of the flavour coming from its MSG and yeast extract content.

In 1908, Oxo sponsored the London Olympic Games (despite claims by Coca-Cola to being the 'first' commercial sponsor of the Games) and supplied athletes with Oxo drinks to fortify them. The first Oxo cubes were produced in 1910 and were cheaper than the liquid. During the first half of the 20th century, Oxo was promoted through issues of recipes, gifts and sponsorships before fading into the background as a part of the fabric of English life in the latter parts of the century. For the beginning of the 21st century a new image was promoted with modern television advertising and sensibilities. In 1966, Oxo had a sponsored show on the offshore radio station Wonderful Radio London. The show was presented by Tony Windsor and his assistant was a woman called Katie. In this show they had a daily recipe.

One of Oxo's advertising campaigns was launched in the UK in 1983, when a second "Oxo Family" debuted on commercial television. The father was played by Michael Redfern, the mother was played by Lynda Bellingham, while the children were played by Blair MacKichan, Colin McCoy and Alison Reynolds. The adverts typically featured the family sitting down to a meal at which Oxo gravy would be served. The product was not always mentioned by name, occasionally appearing only as a logo in the corner of the screen at the end of the commercial. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s the family were seen to grow older, and when the campaign was retired in 1999 the family moved out of the house.

In the UK, Oxo was a brand of the Campbell Soup Company, until April 2006, when the UK arm of Campbells Soup was sold to Premier Foods. Premier Foods bought all the UK operations of the company, including sites at both Worksop and Kings Lynn. It is the Worksop plant that produces OXO cubes.

In South Africa, Oxo is now a brand of Mars, Incorporated. However, the only product marketed under the Oxo brand in South Africa is a yeast extract based spread. The product also contains a lesser portion of beef extract, giving it a slightly 'beefier' taste than other yeast extracts.