 A box of Wheatena from 2006 | |
| Type | Porridge |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | United States |
| Region or state | New York City |
| Created by | George H. Hoyt |
| Main ingredients | Wheat |
Wheatena is an American high-fiber, toasted-wheatcereal that originated onMulberry Street inNew York City,New York,c. 1879, when a smallbakery owner began roastingwhole wheat, grinding it, and packaging it for sale under this brand name.
Wheatena was created by George H. Hoyt in the late 19th century, when retailers would typically buy cereal (the most popular being crackedwheat,oatmeal, andcerealine) inbarrel lots, and scoop it out to sell by the pound to customers. Hoyt, who had found a distinctive process of preparing wheat for cereal, sold his cereal in boxes, offering consumers a sanitary appeal.[1][2]
Hoyt advertised the cereal innewspapers as early as 1879 and sold the business six years later to Dr. Frank Fuller, aphysician with an interest innutrition, who had founded the Health Food Company. Fuller adapted Hoyt's method to his own process for preparing a wheat cereal, and moved manufacturing toAkron, Ohio, close to the wheat supply.
A.R. Wendell bought Health Foods in 1903, and incorporated it as The Wheatena Company that year. In 1907, the company moved to a new plant, dubbed "Wheatenaville", inRahway, New Jersey. By the mid-1920s, millions of boxes were sold each year.[1]
In the early 1960s, theKansas City, Missouri-basedUhlmann Company, owner of theStandard Milling Company, purchased both the Wheatena corporation andHighspire Flour Mills, which for several years had been supplying the 100% cracked wheat used in the cereal. Uhlmann moved Wheatena manufacturing toHighspire, Pennsylvania, in October 1967. The company began leasing its flour-milling facilities to theagribusiness giantConAgra Foods in early 1987, and sold the cereal manufacturing operation toAmerican Home Food Products in April 1988. Uhlmann retained rights to the Wheatena brand until shortly afterInternational Home Foods acquired American Home Foods in November 1996 and then bought the brand name from Uhlmann. International Home Foods was in turn acquired by ConAgra in August 2000.[1]
Entrepreneur William Stadtlander bought the brand and the Pennsylvania manufacturing plant on October 31, 2001, under the newly formed Homestat Farm, Ltd. ofDublin, Ohio,[1] which as of 2006 manufactures Wheatena and fellow vintage cerealsMaypo andMaltex.
In mid-2006, thestate of California sued Homestat underCalifornia Proposition 65 (1986), which requires labeling for food containingacrylamide, a potentialcarcinogen created whenstarch is baked, roasted, fried or toasted, while FederalFood and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations do not.[3][4]
There were two shows:Raising Junior precededWheatenaville.
There were two editions: San Francisco (at least: 3 November 1931 to 22 April 1934), and the eastern (at least: August 1933 to 20 April 1934, then 27 August 1934 to ?).[5][6]
"WHEATENA Corporation, Rahway, N. J., started Nov. 3 to stage its "Raising Junior" feature, an NBC-WJZ offering, over an NBC Pacific Coast network consisting of KPO, San Francisco; KGA, Spokane and KJR, Seattle. KECA, Los Angeles, will add the program Dec. 1. Scripts are written by Peter Dixon, who, with his wife, acts in the New York presentation, and the same continuity is used by the West Coast cast." - BROADCASTING, 15 November 1931[7]
"Peter Dixon,[8] author of Raising Junior, a daily sketch, found his way to the air through the press relations department of the NBC. His wife, Aline Berry, had formerly been an actress and was ambitious to continue with her career. Peter had an idea. Now the whole Dixon family is on the air, at least so far as the skit is concerned."[9]
In the early 1930s, Wheatena sponsoredWheatenaville onNBC's Pacific network. The program debuted September 26, 1932. The cast included Tom Hutchinson, Roberta Hoyt, "who is making her first radio appearance", Elizabeth Mallory andEddie Firestone Jr., "also radio novices",Harold Peary, "who is doing several parts", Wilda Wilson Church, Bobbe Deane, and Bert Horton, withNelson Case as announcer.[10]
"In 1932, “Wheatenaville Sketches” debuted on the NBC[11] and Columbia networks, in which the fictitious Batchelor family ate a daily breakfast as “good, wholesome and nourishing” as the show itself. The half-hour episodes showed Billy Batchelor (voiced by actorRaymond Knight), publisher of the Wheatenaville News..."[12][13][14]
In January 1933,Florence Halop andRaymond Knight were heard, for 15 minutes, onWheatenaville onWEAF andWSAI.[15]
Wheatena sponsored 87 episodes of the thrice-weeklyPopeye the Sailorradio program onNBC'sRed Network, from its Tuesday, Sept.10, 1935, premiere through March 28, 1936. The product was integrated into the narrative as a source, in addition tospinach, of Popeye's superhuman strength. AnnouncerKelvin Keech would sing, to composerSammy Lerner's "Popeye" theme, "Wheatena is his diet / He asks you to try it / With Popeye the sailor man". Wheatena reportedly paidKing Features Syndicate $1,200 per week.[16][17][18]
After this initial run, the show was broadcast Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 7:15–7:30 p.m. onWABC (now WCBS-AM) from August 31, 1936, to February 26, 1937, for an additional 78 episodes. Once again, sung references to spinach were conspicuously absent. Now Popeye would sing, "Wheatena's me diet / I ax ya to try it / I'm Popeye the Sailor Man".[18]
"Nutrition Facts" required by California's Proposition 65:
"Nutrition facts" as they appear on a 2007 box:
Ingredients: toasted crushed whole wheat, wheat bran, wheat germ and calcium carbonate.Serving size: 1/3 cup (dry)Amount per serving:
"Nutrition facts" as they appear on 2006 box
Serving size: 1 cup (141 grams)Amount per serving
%Daily Value, based on a 2000-calorie diet
Wheatenaville sketches returned to the air on August 27th
NETWORK ACCOUNTS 15 November 1931
Microphobia
BILLY BATCHELOR--and his famous twins, Peter and Pan in Wheatenaville sketches are back on the air after a layoff. Same homely, small town humor. Well cast. (NBC-WEAF network every day except Sat. and Sun., 5:45 PM EST)
Booklet with sepia-toned drawing of a selection of city blocks on the front cover. The back cover also has a drawing of city blocks and includes a drawing of sheaves of wheat and a box of Wheatena.
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