Crosse & Blackwell is a British food
brand
A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...
. The original company was established in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
in 1706, then was acquired by Edmund Crosse and Thomas Blackwell in 1830. It became independent until it was acquired by Swiss conglomerate
Nestlé
Nestlé S.A. (; ; ) is a Switzerland, Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other me ...
in 1960.
Food preservation
Food preservation includes processes that make food more resistant to microorganism growth and slow the oxidation of fats. This slows down the decomposition and rancidification process. Food preservation may also include processes that inhibit ...
products branded by Crosse & Blackwell include
condiments,
marmalades,
meat sauce
This is a list of meat-based sauces, consisting of sauces prepared using various types of meats as a primary ingredient. Meat-based sauces are commonly served with or over rice, pasta, or other starches. Thick meat-based sauces are sometimes used ...
s,
seafood sauces,
mincemeat
Mincemeat is a mixture of chopped dried fruit, distilled spirits and spices, and often beef suet, usually used as a pie or pastry filling. Mincemeat formerly contained meat, notably beef or venison. Many modern recipes replace the suet with vege ...
s,
mustard,
pickles, and
pickled onions, among others.
The Crosse & Blackwell brand for North America was discontinued by J.M. Smucker in December, 2022.
History
Early history
Jackson's, a colonial produce business, was established in London in 1706, later becoming West & Wyatt and specialising in pickles, sauces and condiments,
plus salted fish, and it held Royal appointments to
George III
George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...
,
George IV
George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...
and
William IV.
Described as "oilmen and salters," West & Wyatt had factory premises at 11 King Street (now
Shaftesbury Avenue
Shaftesbury Avenue is a major road in the West End of London, named after The 7th Earl of Shaftesbury. It runs north-easterly from Piccadilly Circus to New Oxford Street, crossing Charing Cross Road at Cambridge Circus. From Piccadilly Cir ...
) in
Soho
Soho is an area of the City of Westminster, part of the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century.
The area was develop ...
in 1818,
packaging and supplying sweet oils, foods preserved in oil, and
crystallised fruits and
preserves
Fruit preserves are preparations of fruits whose main preserving agent is sugar and sometimes acid, often stored in glass jars and used as a condiment or spread.
There are many varieties of fruit preserves globally, distinguished by the method ...
.
In 1819, the company was joined by two apprentices: Edmund Crosse (1804–1862) and Thomas Blackwell (1804–1879). In 1830 they borrowed £600 from their families to buy the business, which became known as "Crosse & Blackwell".
The company was one of the first to secure a
Royal Warrant A royal warrant is a document issued by a monarch which confers rights or privileges on the recipient, or has the effect of law.
Royal warrant may refer to:
* Royal warrant of appointment, warrant to tradespeople who supply goods or services to a r ...
from
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...
, in 1837.
![piccalilli-1867](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Piccalilli-1867.jpg)
By 1839 the company had expanded and moved its offices and shop to 20-21
Soho Square.
During the following decade, it pioneered the use of celebrity chefs as endorsers and collaborators, working with
Alexis Soyer from 1850 to create the tangy Soyer's Sauce, Soyer's Relish and Soyer's Sultana Sauce products.
It was also a wholesaler of
Lea & Perrins
Lea & Perrins (L&P) is a United Kingdom-based subsidiary of Kraft Heinz, originating in Worcester, England where it continues to operate. It is best known as the maker of Lea & Perrins brand of Worcestershire sauce, which was first sold in 183 ...
Worcestershire sauce.
Crosse & Blackwell opened a vinegar brewery in Caledonian Road and started pickle packing at Soho Square (described by
Henry Mayhew in his 1865 book ''The Shops and Companies of London, and the Trades and Manufactories of Great Britain,'' in a report entitled 'Girls in Pickle').
Crosse & Blackwell also acquired a small
Bermondsey canning firm, Gamble & Company, established in 1812 (as
Donkin,
Hall
In architecture, a hall is a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age and early Middle Ages in northern Europe, a mead hall was where a lord and his retainers ate and also slept. Later in the Middle Ages, the gr ...
and Gamble)
to produce preserved fruit, vegetables and meat to supply long distance vessels.
In 1849, the company also established a plant in
Cork
Cork or CORK may refer to:
Materials
* Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product
** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container
***Wine cork
Places Ireland
* Cork (city)
** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
to produce canned salmon.
Over the latter years of the 19th century, Crosse & Blackwell developed several buildings in Charing Cross Road, close to its Soho Square premises. In 1875–76, the company commissioned a two-storey stable complex at 111 Charing Cross Road, designed by architect
Robert Lewis Roumieu.
Roumieu died in 1877, but his son, Reginald St Aubyn Roumieu, trading as Roumieu & Aitchison, completed a further warehouse at 151-155 Charing Cross Road (which remained in use until 1921), and in 1888 designed another warehouse at 157 Charing Cross Road (completed in 1893; in 1927, this was redeveloped as the
Astoria theatre
The London Astoria was a music venue at 157 Charing Cross Road, in London, England.
Originally a warehouse during the 1920s, the building became a cinema and ballroom. It was converted for use as a theatre in the 1970s. After further developme ...
).
From 1888 until the 1920s, Crosse & Blackwell also had offices at 114-116 Charing Cross Road, again designed by Roumieu & Aitchison.
20th century
Before
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Crosse & Blackwell (a limited company since 1892) established its first factory in continental Europe, in
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
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, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
.
After the war, it acquired another Bermondsey-based business, sauce and pickle maker E Lazenby & Son Ltd, in 1919, and
Dundee
Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...
-based marmalade manufacturer
James Keiller & Son Ltd in 1924. The latter had a factory at Tay Wharf in east London's
Silvertown
Silvertown is a district in the London Borough of Newham, in east London, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, Thames and was historically part of the parishes of West Ham and East Ham, Becontree Hundred, hundred of Becontr ...
district, close to the River Thames, rail links and
Henry Tate's sugar refinery.
Further acquisitions included Cosmelli Packing Company, Robert Kellie & Son, Batzer & Co, and Alexander Cairns & Sons.
After World War I, Crosse & Blackwell established further factories overseas (by 1930, it had plants in
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
,
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
,
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
,
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
and
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
, as well as in the UK and Hamburg).
Branston
In 1920, Crosse & Blackwell made a successful £612,856 bid to acquire a factory site in
Branston, just outside
Burton upon Trent
Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a market town in the borough of East Staffordshire in the county of Staffordshire, England, close to the border with Derbyshire. In United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011, it had a ...
, which they pledged to turn into the largest and best-equipped food preserving plant in the British Empire.
This allowed the company to vacate its Soho properties (nearly 100 years later the Soho Square premises were the subject of an archaeological investigation during construction of the London
Crossrail project).
In 1922 they started to produce
Branston Pickle
Branston is an English food brand best known for the original Branston Pickle, a jarred pickled chutney first made in 1922 in the village of Branston near Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire by Crosse & Blackwell. The Branston factory proved to b ...
(to a recipe attributed to Mrs Caroline Graham and her daughters Evelyn and Ermentrude)
at their new factory, but this factory proved uneconomic and production was moved to the Lazenby site in Crimscott Street, Bermondsey.
Production at Branston ended in January 1925, leading to large scale local unemployment, and many local people boycotted Crosse & Blackwell products as a result.
The Bermondsey site was expanded with new buildings in 1924 and 1926 and remained in use until 1969.
Keiller
![Morris Commercial delivery van 3485cc manufactured 1937](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/Morris_Commercial_delivery_van_3485cc_manufactured_1937.jpg)
The Keiller factory in Silvertown had been destroyed in an 1889 fire and rebuilt the following year. It continued manufacture of preserves, chocolates and confectionery until it was again destroyed, this time bombed during the first daylight air raid on London on 7 September 1940. Chocolate and confectionery work was transferred to Dundee, but preserves manufacture was eventually restarted. This then transferred to
Dundee
Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...
in 1956.
Nestlé
In 1960,
Nestlé
Nestlé S.A. (; ; ) is a Switzerland, Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other me ...
bought the Crosse & Blackwell Group
[Nestlé (1991)- 125 Years 1866-1991, Published by Nestlé SA, Vevey] and developed the name across a number of food categories worldwide. The acquisition increased Nestlé's output (adding 11 factories) and included the largest fish-canning factory in the UK (located in
Peterhead,
Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland.
It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially differe ...
). Crosse & Blackwell employed 4,700 workers in production and 1,900 other employees and salespeople at the time of the acquisition. The brand was later owned by
Premier Foods.
A prominent member of the founder's family is
Chris Blackwell
Christopher Percy Gordon Blackwell (born 22 June 1937) is an English businessman and former record producer, and the founder of Island Records, which has been called "one of Britain's great independent labels". According to the Rock and Roll ...
, founder of
Island Records
Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...
.
21st century
The company divested the Crosse & Blackwell operations in 2002. Today ownership of the Crosse & Blackwell brand is divided between
The J.M. Smucker Company
The J.M. Smucker Company, also known as Smuckers, is an American manufacturer of food and beverage products. Headquartered in Orrville, Ohio, the company was founded in 1897 as a maker of apple butter. J.M. Smucker currently has three major bus ...
in
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
,
Princes Group
Princes Group is an international food and drink group involved in the manufacture, import and distribution of branded and customer own-brand products.
Customers include major supermarkets, convenience stores, foodservice operators, wholesale su ...
in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and
Tiger Brands
Tiger Brands Limited () is a South African packaged goods company. In addition to the company's South African operations, Tiger Brands has direct and indirect interests in international food businesses in Chile, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Nigeria, Ke ...
in South Africa.
In December 2022, J.M. Smucker Company discontinued the Crosse & Blackwell brand with products no longer being manufactured for North America.
See also
*
List of brand name condiments
This is a list of brand name condiments. A condiment is a supplemental food, such as a sauce, that is added to some foods to impart a particular flavor, enhance its flavor, or in some cultures, to complement the dish. The term originally describe ...
*
Major Grey's Chutney
Major Grey's Chutney is a type of chutney, reputedly created by a 19th-century British Army officer of the same name who, though likely apocryphal, presumably lived in British India. Its characteristic ingredients are mango, raisins, vinegar, li ...
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crosse and Blackwell
1706 establishments in England
Food product brands
Brand name condiments
British condiments
The J.M. Smucker Co. brands
Condiment companies
Food and drink companies of England