How Quaker Oat's 1886 Marketing Strategy Rocked The Food World

Oats weren't commonly eaten for breakfast until the late 19th century; back then, the 21st century gluten-free breakfast staple was mainly enjoyed by horses. That is, until Quakers Oats changed the game: In 1886, the company became the first to debut recipes on the back of packaging, with a recipe for oatmeal bread. This continued to evolve with a catalogue of recipes, including the popular Vanishing Oatmeal Cookies, sparking a flurry of oatmeal innovations, including a slow-cooked, apple-cinnamon version. 

Industrialized food flourished in the late 19th century, which saw the launch of Campbell's canned soup, Heinz ketchup, and Jell-O, but it wasn't until decades later that these companies started to catch onto Quaker's bright idea. With the dawn of the 20th century came the discovery of vitamins, leading to a burgeoning interest in scientific cooking and nutrition. With this came a flurry of back-of-box recipes, with businesses leaping onto the culinary fervor. There were Bisquick pancakes, Nestle Toll House cookies, Betty Crocker cake mixes, and, of course, who can forget Campbell's green bean casserole. "Brands developed the recipes to find ways to get consumers to try their product and then to keep buying it," says food historian Emily Contois (via Eater). Evidence shows that it worked, with many of these recipes finding their way onto American kitchen tables today.

Quakers Oats overhauled the landscape of the marketing world in many other ways. In the 1850's, shoppers bought scooped oats from large barrels. A few years later, the company started offering oats in 2-pound paper boxes sporting the iconic logo of a smiling Quaker man, building on the Quakers' reputation for honesty at a time when the manufacturing sector was largely considered unclean and toxic. In 1915, the company launched the infamous colorful canister, standing out as a vibrant, unique pick amid a sea of monotonous boxes.

Then, in 1922, Quaker Quick Oats hit the shelves; an easy switch-up for the Old Fashioned Oats used in baking. Following this, in 1966, Quaker Instant Oatmeal was introduced, offering a tasty, convenient breakfast option perfectly suited to the increasingly fast-paced American lifestyle. Even then, Quaker wasn't shy about thinking outside the box with its marketing. Think surprise toys in every box, coupon exchanges for tiny plots of land in Connecticut, or even a double boiler mailed to your door for just a buck and a cereal proof-of-purchase. What's more, the company launched a new line of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory"-inspired candy in the '60s, and funded the movie adaption of Roald Dahl's classic as a cunning marketing bid for candy bars you may have forgotten about, such as Willy Wonka's Super Skrunch Bar. In 2023, it switched to paper packaging for porridge pots in a bid to become more sustainable, proving it a business that, to this day, is at the cutting edge of advertising innovation.