Topic: Oscar Mayer

Oscar Mayer is an American meat and cold cut production company, owned by Kraft Foods, known for its hot dogs, bologna, bacon and Lunchables products.

German immigrant Oscar F. Mayer (March 29, 1859 in Neresheim - March 11, 1955) began working at a meat market in Detroit, Michigan, and later in Chicago, Illinois. In 1900 in Chicago, Oscar Mayer, along with his brother Gottfried, leased the Kolling Meat Market. The two sold bratwurst, liverwurst, and weißwurst and were popular in the predominantly German neighborhoods of Chicago around the market.

As the meat market's popularity grew, it expanded its storefront and sponsored local events including the Chicago World's Fair in 1893. By 1900 the company had 43 employees and Chicago-wide delivery service. In 1904 Oscar Mayer began branding its meats to capitalize on their popularity, beginning an industry-wide trend. In 1906 Oscar Mayer became one of the first companies to voluntarily submit to the newly-created Food Safety Inspection Service (part of the United States Department of Agriculture) for testing the purity of their products.