Who issued a challenge that led to the invention of margarine?

Emperor Napoleon III of France offered a prize to anyone who could make a satisfactory butter alternative, suitable for use by the armed forces and the lower classes. French chemist Hippolyte Mège-Mouriès invented a substance he called oleomargarine, which became shortened to the trade name margarine. Mège-Mouriès patented the concept in 1869 and expanded his initial manufacturing operation from France but had little commercial success. In 1871, he sold the patent to the Dutch company Jurgens, now part of Unilever. In the same year a German pharmacist, Benedict Klein from Cologne, founded the first margarine factory "Benedict Klein Margarinewerke", producing the brands Overstolz and Botteram.

More Info: en.wikipedia.org

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36 Comments

Bill Coe

The funny thing is that it was touted as a healthy alternative to butter but now that we understand more about trans fats, we realize that butter is actually the more healthy choice. But, as to your silly assertion that it is one molecule away from plastice, YOU are one molecule away from a mushroom. Stupid. And Larry W. Jones, ants will lap it up. I can't believe the number of ridiculous comments on this chain. Talk about the dumbing down of America. Maybe it was something in the margarine?? http://www.snopes.com/food/warnings/butter.asp

c newsome

How could I get this wrong?! Why didn't I see it? 😏 You can't spell Napoleon without 'oleo'! 😄

patrhea

I go for REAL BUTTER!

Donna Kennedy

Sorry Richard, but you are wrong about it being close to plastic. On the other hand, butter and even lard are safer AND NATURAL alternatives as they are not chemical compositons made out of unhealthy things. Recent reading that I have done actually endorses lard as a healthy alternative. All fat is bad if you overindulge in it over time. In moderation, our body needs some healthy fat to enable us to absorb fat soluble vitamins that we need in our diets and cannot get from water soluble sources.

Maurice Carlier

Good trivia, bad product 😛

Judith Chandler

Butter is better.

Cheryl Love

Shirley Dutt, where did you get this “info”? None of what you wrote is correct. None.

Shirley Dutt

Basically one molecule off from the plastic it's packaged in. It started out as a supplement feed for cattle, but they wouldn't touch it. So they marketed it to humans and it was white. Humans didn't buy it, so they put yellow coloring in it and touted it as a healthy alternative to butter. Disgusting stuff. Butter, even with the fat, is better for you.

Char

Bill Coe, you have no right to call people names now I have no idea on the molecular structure. Yet I'm agreeing on the part of finding out after way more years than I knew. That butter Is healthier than margarine as our body saps up more of the fats in it due to the hydrogenation process.

Char

Wow I missed it as I thought margarine was a way more modern invention of my time. It see how wrong I was lol

Lawanta

Growing up in Wisconsin, we couldn't buy margarine here, only butter (what do you expect in "America's Dairyland"?) My grandparents made monthly runs to Ironwood, MI to buy it for the whole family🚙 It wasn't until about the late 1960s that the state changed the law😳