The Sweet History of the Oreo Cookie | The Sugar Association (2024)

The Sweet History of the Oreo Cookie | The Sugar Association (1)

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By Laura Rutherford, Contributor

March 2023

Today is National Oreo Cookie Day! On this day in 1912, Oreo cookies were first developed and produced by Nabisco in New York City. It’s time to celebrate the iconic crunchy chocolate sandwich cookie with the sweet vanilla cream filling that Americans have enjoyed for over one hundred years.

March 6th is National Oreo Cookie Day! On this day in 1912, Oreo cookies were first developed and produced by Nabisco in New York City. It’s time to celebrate the iconic crunchy chocolate sandwich cookie with the sweet vanilla cream filling that Americans have enjoyed for over one hundred years.

The very first Oreos were sold to a grocer in Hoboken, New Jersey, named S.C. Thuesen in March of 1912. Nine and a quarter pounds of Oreos cost the store $1.85 and the tin they came in cost an additional 50 cents. The cookies were a hit and an American tradition was born. Today, the cookie can be found in more than 100 countries! On November 21, 2011, the Oreo cookie received the Guinness World record for the world’s biggest selling cookie with total sales in excess of 500 billion since its introduction in 1912.

For decades, people have debated the correct way to eat an Oreo cookie. Some like to twist the cookie in half, lick the frosting and dunk it in a glass of milk, while others like to break their cookie in half before eating. While there’s no wrong way to enjoy your tasty treat, Oreo has been promoting the “twist, link and dunk” method since 1923, when the first advertisem*nt showing “the twist” appeared on trolley cars.

Oreo has also produced many varieties of its popular cookie, as well as themes, special edition and limited-edition runs that have become popular in the 21st century. Special edition cookies have colored frosting and a stamped design in accordance with the current holiday. In 1974, the company introduced the Double Stuf Oreo with twice the filling of the original cookie. In 1992, they rolled out the Oreo Mini and released the Mega Stuf Oreo in 2013.

Oreo cookies are also beloved for their affordability, accessibility, and versatility. Countless dessert recipes from cakes and crusts to ice cream and bars feature the easy-to-use Oreo. There is even a deep-fried Oreo, introduced in 2001 by Charlie Boghosian at the L.A. County Fair. Boghosian dipped Oreos in pancake batter, deep-fried them, drizzled them with chocolate syrup and served them with powdered sugar. Since its debut, the deep-fried Oreo has become a staple at state fairs and carnivals around the country.

The Oreo brand has been owned by Mondelez International since 2012. According to Mondelez, it takes two hours to make and bake one Oreo cookie. The company operates factories in 18 countries around the world that produce 40 billion cookies per year. If stacked together, these cookies would circle the earth five times! No one knows for sure how the Oreo cookie originally got its name, although the brand is a household name now. The street in New York City where Oreo originally debuted was renamed “Oreo Way” to honor where the very first cookie in the very first Nabisco factory was located.

The taste of Oreo cookies is the taste of nostalgia for many Americans and a sweet reminder of childhood. The cookies are also a longstanding tradition in many families, so raise your milk glass and wish the Oreo a happy 111th birthday!

The Sweet History of the Oreo Cookie | The Sugar Association (2)

About the Author

Laura Rutherford graduated from the University of North Dakota in 2004 with a degree in Political Science. She is a shareholder in American Crystal Sugar Company and a member of the Red River Valley Sugarbeet Growers Association (RRVSGA), the World Association of Beet and Cane Growers (WABCG), and the American Society of Sugarbeet Technologists. She is on the Board of Directors of the Sugar Industry Biotechnology Council and has published articles for the WABCG, the Red River Valley Sugarbeet Growers Association newsletter, and the British Sugarbeet Review magazine in Cambs, United Kingdom.

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The Sweet History of the Oreo Cookie | The Sugar Association (2024)

FAQs

The Sweet History of the Oreo Cookie | The Sugar Association? ›

The very first Oreos were sold to a grocer in Hoboken, New Jersey, named S.C. Thuesen in March of 1912. Nine and a quarter pounds of Oreos cost the store $1.85 and the tin they came in cost an additional 50 cents. The cookies were a hit and an American tradition was born.

What does Oreo stand for? ›

Etymology. The origin of the name "Oreo" is unknown, but there are many hypotheses, including derivations from the French word or, meaning "gold", or from the Greek word ωραίο (oreo) meaning "nice" or "attractive". Others believe that the cookie was named Oreo simply because the name was short and easy to pronounce.

How much did Hydrox sue Oreo for? ›

Upset with the Chicago-based company's efforts to diminish his brand's presence in the competitive cookie aisle, he filed an official complaint with the Federal Trade Commission in 2018 seeking $800 million in damages. Kassoff said he has yet to hear back from the agency.

What is the story behind the Oreo Brothers? ›

A long time ago, two brothers disliked each other.

Jacob and Joseph Loose ran two competing bakeries in Kansas City, Missouri. Jacob invented the Hydrox cookie. It was a chocolate cookie with vanilla creme filling. Joseph copied his brother and created Oreo, but he struggled to build a successful company.

Is Hydrox still in business? ›

It debuted in the United States in 1908, and was manufactured by Sunshine Biscuits for over 90 years. Hydrox was largely discontinued in 1999, three years after Sunshine was acquired by Keebler, which was later acquired by Kellogg's which in turn sold the cookie line and the rights to the Keebler name to Ferrero SpA.

What does Oreo cookie mean in slang? ›

Oreo cookie (plural Oreo cookies) (slang, idiomatic, mildly pejorative) A black person that appears to the community to embody the social and cultural features of a white person quotations ▼ (slang, sexual) A threeway involving two black participants and one white participant between them quotations ▼

What is the rarest Oreo cookie? ›

Pokemon Mew Oreo Cookie - Ultra Rare.

Why were Hydrox cookies discontinued? ›

“There were probably associations that you and I as consumers didn't like about the brand.” Kassoff said it was sales and marketing decisions, not the product, that led to Hydrox's demise. “The misconception about resurrecting brands is, 'Oh, these brands must have died because nobody wanted them anymore,'” he said.

What is the best-selling cookie of all time? ›

Oreo is the best-selling cookie in the world. It is now sold in over 100 countries. Oreo was first produced in 1912 by the National Biscuit Company, now known as Na-Bis-Co. But did you know Oreos are a copycat product?

What cookie is Oreo a knockoff of? ›

Oreo is the best-selling cookie in the world today. But few people remember the product that Nabisco blatantly ripped off: Hydrox. A creation of Kansas City's Loose-Wiles Biscuit Company, Hydrox was billed as the “aristocrat of cookies,” with a novel combo of chocolate and cream filling.

What is the mystery Oreo? ›

Here's how the corresponding contest worked: If you guessed the correct flavor, you were entered to win $50,000. Easy money, right? Well, time to take your detective hats off, because after months of suffering guessing, Oreo finally revealed that the creme is churro-flavored (...and the winner was notified).

Is Hydrox a ripoff of Oreo? ›

Anyway, just a few years later, the Oreo cookie was created in 1912 as an imitation. Unfortunately for Hydrox, Oreo eventually took off and passed Hydrox in popularity. Hydrox cookies have been discontinued and re-introduced several times in the past century, including a brief reformulated cookie called Droxies.

What does the acronym Oreo stand for in writing? ›

OREO stands for Opinion, Reasons, Explanation and Opinion (again) It can help the students to write by using this format. First, learners will give theiropinion and tell how they feel about the topic/story.

Why does my Oreo have a letter on it? ›

The idea was to be able to point a mobile camera at an OREO Cookie- which had a letter of the alphabet embossed on it. We had to be able to tell each cookie apart with a high degree of confidence with the lowest latency.

What is the Oreo slogan? ›

The famous “Twist, Lick, Dunk” slogan is a simple yet memorable message that helped spread brand awareness. Another tactic used by Oreo is to tap into nostalgia by using images and messages that evoke childhood memories.

Who invented Oreo cookies? ›

Samuel J. Porcello (May 23, 1935 – May 12, 2012) was an American food scientist who worked at Nabisco for 34 years. He is particularly noted for his work on the modern Oreo cookie. Porcello held five patents directly related to the Oreo.

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