The History of Chips and Crisps
I would like to say that after extensive research, including days, weeks, and months of poring over books in the world’s grandest libraries, I have discovered the origin of potato chips and crisps - The first instance of the world's favourite snack food's creation. I would like to, but I can’t, and had I uncovered that first reference it would prove an unreliable marker in time, as it may not directly relate to thinly sliced potatoes comparable to modern-day chips and crisps, without detailed specification.
The potato was first domesticated as an edible food between 8,000 and 5,000 BC in what is now southern Peru and North Western Bolivia. People across the world extracted vegetable oils from a variety of foodstuffs for cooking purposes thousands of years ago. Soy oil has been traced back to 2,000 BC in China. Southern Europeans were producing olive oil by 3,000 BC. In parts of the Americas, peanuts and sunflower seeds were roasted and beaten into a paste before boiling. The oil that rose to the surface was then skimmed off.
As the earliest relationship between any variation of cooking oil and potatoes could not possibly be presumed, I was left to return to the earliest recorded publication of thinly sliced potatoes cooked in oil.
Potatoes Fried in Slices or Shavings
Peel large potatoes: Slice them about a quarter of an inch thick, or cut them in shavings round and round, as you would peel a lemon; dry them well in a clean cloth and fry them in lard or dripping. Take care that your fat and frying-pan are quite clean; put it on a quick fire, watch it, and as soon as the lard boils, and is still, put in the slices of potato, and keep moving them till they are crisp. Take them up and lay them to drain on a sieve: send them up with a very little salt sprinkled over them.
Title: The Cook’s Oracle
Author: William Kitchiner
Year: 1817
To Fry Sliced Potatos
Peel large potatos, slice them about a quarter of an inch thick, or cut them in shavings round and round, as you would peel a lemon; dry them well in a clean cloth, and fry them in lard or dripping. Take care that your fat and frying-pan are quite clean; put it on a quick fire, watch it, and as soon as the lard boils and is still, put in the slices of potatos, and keep moving them till they are crisp; take them up, and lay them to drain on a sieve; send them up with very little salt sprinkled on them.
Title: The Virginia Housewife
Author: Mary Randolph
Year: 1824
Fried Potatoes
Peel a pound of potatoes, cut them into very thin slices, almost shavings; put some fat into a frying-pan; when very hot, but not burning, throw the slices in, not too many at a time, as they will stick together; move them about with a skimmer, to prevent it. When a nice brown colour, take them out, and sprinkle some salt over; serve them up separate, or over broiled meat. Two inches of fat ought to be in the pan.
Title: A Shilling Cookery for the People
Author: Alexis Benoit Soyer
Year: 1854
Putting Mary Randolph’s plagiarism aside, William Kitchiner’s book includes a chapter on frying and another on potato preparation that includes no less than sixteen variations, including the following.
Potatoes Fried Whole
When nearly boiled enough, as directed in No. 102, put them into a stew-pan with a bit of butter, or some nice clean beef-drippings; shake them about often (for fear of burning them), till they are brown and crisp; drain them from the fat. Obs.—It will be an elegant improvement to the last three receipts, previous to frying or broiling the potatoes, to flour them and dip them in the yelk of an egg, and then roll them in fine-sifted bread-crumbs; they will then deserve to be called POTATOES FULL DRESSED.
The capitalisation of the final phrase perhaps suggests this may be a unique, or at that time, untitled recipe. The inclusion of so many preparation methods, all of which are commonly used today, also suggests that frying thinly cut potatoes was just part of the recipe crowd. Nothing new here, move on. The recipe for potatoes fried in slices or shavings enjoyed no more emphasis than mashed potatoes. Given the complicated and extraordinary array of recipes created during that period - Kitchiner included no less than sixteen recipes for ketchup in his tome - It is not a stretch of the imagination to assume sliced and fried potato shavings was a common dish.
My quest for the origins of today's potato chip or crisp unveiled a distinct pattern. Where no proof of origin or historical timelines exist for popular or common foods, apocryphal tales and legends abound. Fried potatoes have great stories of their own. They also throw new questions into the mix, one of which I have already alluded to. The other - Are they potato chips or potato crisps? And for that matter, where do French fries come into it?
Thomas Jefferson was a Founding Father of the United States and its third president. Leaving the Louisiana Purchase and his part in the Declaration of Independence to one side for the moment, I would argue one of his most notable contributions to modern-day American society was his alleged introduction of a foodstuff almost everyone that has subsequently lived in his country, has eaten.
The United States Snack Food Association claims that it was while serving as Ambassador to France during the 1780s that Jefferson first discovered French fries. According to SNAC, he loved nothing more than to serve them to his guests at his house in Monticello, after his return from Europe. While SNAC might have us conjure images of Jefferson swatting John Adams away, “Stop bothering me John, this is a hot kettle of oil and I have promised the first batch to George,” it all appears a bit too convenient. Not quite North Korean State News Agency reports that the lair of a unicorn once ridden by an ancestor of Kim Jong-Un, had been discovered, but given the number of established recipes already discussed, it all sounds a little too spurious.
The George Crum Legend
If Thomas Jefferson introduced French fries to the USA and therefore to the world’s attention, it will come as little surprise that an American has also been credited with the invention of the potato chip.
Saratoga Springs was a summer playground for the rich and famous. Socialites flocked together for the ‘season’ and it appears their modern-day equivalent of a celebrity or Michelin star chef, was George Crum. Crum’s skills as a hunter fisherman and guide were much sought after, and later in life, so were his culinary skills.
Unlike other descendants of Native American or African ancestors, much of Crum’s life is recorded. Despite being unable to read or write, he built a not inconsiderable fortune, a reputation among the gentry, and served senators, and even presidents, in his restaurant.
A condensed version of his tale reads something like this: During a hot and balmy 1853 summer’s afternoon, Crum, a chef at Cary Moon’s Lake Lodge Restaurant, was a bit hot and bothered. A fussy diner had sent a dish of French fried potatoes back to the kitchen for being sliced too thickly – More than once. The cook was having a bad day, so he sliced the next batch so thinly that, “The fork could not skewer them.” Rather than expressing further dissatisfaction the diner was overjoyed and ordered more.
The setting for this story and many similar tales is Moon’s Lake House, one of several impressive establishments in the Saratoga Springs and Ballston Spa areas. I should say at this juncture that none of these stories were reported until owners, Cary and Harriet Moon, placed their property up for sale in 1885.
In 2009, TJ Stiles published The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt. Within his book, Stiles included a mention of crispy fried potatoes that the legendary shipping magnate enjoyed as far back as 1849. This was before the Moon’s operated the Lake House and four years before Crum allegedly invented them.
Jefferson Williamson’s 1930 book, American Hotel included the first exploration of the Crum legend.
“This appetizing dainty gets its name from the fact that it was accidentally invented in the early 1850s at the old Montgomery Hall, kept by Carey E. Moon, at Saratoga. Legend has it that in 1853 George Crum, the chef; got an order from a fastidious diner to cut his French fried potatoes thinner. In a spirit of sarcasm, Crum sliced off a sheet of potato as thin as a wafer and dropped it into the hot fat of a frying pan. A few minutes later he fished it out and ate it. So good did it taste that he fried a few more slices, sharing them with his assistants, and with Mrs. Carey Moon, who had a quantity of them fried and put into paper cornucopias for the guests. The chips won favor at once and within a few years became an established viand throughout the country.”
Other references between those periods were scant, but since that time a variety of variations have appeared, including within this 1906 profile of Crum’s sister Kate Wicks, in the Saratogian Journal.
“If it had not been for Mrs. Catherine Ann Wicks, the world might never have enjoyed the crisp delicacies known as Saratoga Chips. It was many years ago while employed as a cook at Moon’s Lake House that she conceived of the idea of slicing potatoes to a tissue paper thinness and frying them in deep fat. Saratoga chips went fare to make Moon’s resort famous.”
These observations are somewhat undermined by the following from the New York Herald, 2nd August 1849.
“…while the fame of “Eliza, the cook,” for crisping potatoes has become so wide that she has frequent offers to take places of profit in the city, where her talents in this respect may be made effective. A queer way to build up a reputation, you will say; but it is nevertheless true, that “Eliza’s” potato frying reputation is one of the prominent matters of remark at Saratoga, and scores of people visit the lake and carry away specimens of the vegetable, as prepared by her, as curiosities. Ladies frequently pay her a handsome fee for the privilege of witnessing the mode of operation, pursued by her, so that they may instruct their cooks at home. Eliza always takes the fee and pleasantly enough imparts the theoretic knowledge necessary for potato frying; but no lady has, as yet, been able to teach the art to her cooks at home. Who would think that simple potatoes could be made such a luxury! and yet, Eliza is not proud of her reputation; she is not puffed up with pride; she cooks on during the summer and has numerous standing offers to cook for nabobs of the city, at large wages, during the winter. Who knows how many of her children, or children’s children, will here-after drive tandem to Lake Saratoga, to eat trout, woodcock, and fried potatoes, under the same roof where she is now engaged in acquiring laurels.”
There was a lake house owned by Loomis & Co. I would suspect Eliza was Eliza Loomis, although there is a theory that it could be an African American cook with the same forename. This is where we find consistency and inconsistency. The first person to cook what we now know as potato chips or crisps remains speculation, but if this is the inconsistency, it is opposed by a factor that seems to repeat consistently in most storytelling.
George and Eliza Loomis began operating the Lake House in 1841. Five years later, a fire destroyed the building. The couple rebuilt the property with partners, and after George died in 1849, Eliza continued the business with other family members.
The Loomis family sold their interests to Cary and Harriet Moon in 1854, a year after the alleged invention of the world’s favourite snack food. This does, however, provide us with the consistency – The place of birth. Most variations of the story repeat Moon’s Lake House, and its reputation for this delicacy grew quickly.
On 7th September 1860, The New York Times included the following account.
“Before coming to Saratoga I encountered a young lady who had just completed the tour of Niagara Falls and the White Mountains. To the question of what she had seen and found worth mentioning during her travels, she replied that the fried potatoes at Saratoga Lake were delightful. In the course of an hour’s conversation you could pump nothing from her but fried potatoes. The same enthusiasm prevails with everyone you meet. The livery-keeper urges you to hire a horse and ride or drive to the lake, and his main argument is ‘Fried Potatoes’.”
As the reputation of Moon’s Lake House grew and stories of their Saratoga Chips spread, it is unsurprising that the Moons claimed credit themselves. If this has led to the legend’s ambiguity it is nothing compared to the cast of potential inventors.
It is hard to say how Kate Wicks or George Crum entered the list. Apart from selling game and fish to the Moon’s, Crum does not appear to have any further relationship with the business. It could be as simple as marketing for Crum’s successful restaurant, his reputation as a chef, and the important people he regularly cooked for. He may also have supplied, or even worked for the Loomis’ before the 1853 point in time.
Other plausible Saratoga Chip inventors include, ‘Old’ Flora, a black woman who was said to have cooked them for many years before moving to Saratoga Springs. An unnamed ‘Coloured Auntie,’ who was said to have been cooking the delicacy as early as the 1830s. Hiram Thomas, an African American cook from New Orleans, who cooked at Moon’s Lake House. Emeline or Susan Jones (could be one person or two), who were also southern cooks that worked at Moon’s. Peter Francis, one-time mentor and brother-in-law of George Crum. Or an unnamed ‘Southern Mammy,’ who assisted Harriet Moon.
To summarise, I believe the fussy customer and the accidental discovery story are both plausible versions of the actual invention, but conversely, I cannot believe no-one before had ever placed thinly cut slices of potatoes in a bubbling pot of oil, even if accidentally.
I believe there is sufficient evidence to suggest the Saratoga Chip began life at Loomis’ Lake House, and possibly, in the late 1840s. It is certainly clear that the sale of cornucopias of these chips grew the reputation of the same Lake House under the Moons, for decades. I would go as far as saying the coverage received during the Moon's ownership led to the widespread development, and perhaps existence, of the product we eat today.
I am afraid we may never know the inventor. Not just because potatoes had possibly been eaten this way for many years, but because there is no recorded certainty. Having read much of the research material available, I would guess it would have been one of two people: Eliza Loomis, or an unnamed or specified African American cook, who would have been working in Mrs Loomis’ kitchen at that time.
Nevertheless, the Crum story is the generally accepted origin of what Americans now call the potato chip. Legends are often born through the illusory truth effect, or repeating stories so often they are considered fact. The internet is rife with variations of the tale of George Crum, and worldwide newspapers adore the story, often citing it as fact.
Historians date fried potatoes to around 1680 when Belgian housewives replaced limited fish stocks with the vegetable, after the Meuse River froze during a cold winter.
By the 1830s, fried potatoes were ubiquitous among London’s poor. There are also references to early fish and chips shops. In 1837, Charles Dickens referred to a “fried fish warehouse” in Oliver Twist.
John K Walton, the author of Fish and Chips and the British Working Class, 1870-1940, wrote, “We don’t really know who was first. Several places popped up around 1860 and nobody knew at the time that something important was beginning.” It could have been a thirteen-year-old East London resident called Joseph Malin, who was said to have sold fried fish and chips before opening a shop in 1860, but there is also an impressive blue plaque in Oldham claiming the same year.
By 1910, there were around 25,000 fish and chip shops in the UK. Is it a stretch of the imagination to believe half a century passed by without a version of the Saratoga Chip being experimented with?
Most pertinent to this analysis is the word ‘chips’ is used as the fish accompaniment rather than French fries. As the Napoleonic wars did not conclude until 1815, the Great British public would have almost certainly rejected this cultural reference.
However, even if something already existed it does not mean someone should not be empowered to shout, “Eureka,” and claim it as their own, and as the legend of George Crum is so well crafted who am I to argue?
It does not solve the nomenclature issues, but as with the Jefferson tale, it does provide a neatly packaged historical reference point for what is now the world’s most popular snack food product.
Early Pioneers
Whatever the truth of the George Crum legend, it took a further decade or so before we find the launch of America's first potato chips company. The John Boyd Company began in 1868 and sold chips to Massachusetts stores. Reliable records are inconclusive, but others would have surely replicated this cottage industry approach during the late nineteenth century. It would be speculation to presume earlier companies existed, but as soon as Saratoga Chips were cooked, demand was created, and history tells us companies always emerge to supply such demand.
US newspaper archives include a variety of titles from the 1870s with similar recipes that include Saratoga chips as a side dish. The Morning Journal, (New Haven, Connecticut, USA), date: 21st December 1880, features the first published company advertisement I have found. I would presume Messrs. Gilbert & Thompson was a grocery store or supplier. Although G Ramsay of Alexandria, Virginia (USA), did take a one-line advertisement out in the Alexandria Gazette on 28th September 1878, declaring that he sold Saratoga chips.
The first purveyor of chips I have found that lists a company name with Saratoga or Potato Chips in the registered title itself, was the Chicago Saratoga Chip Co. An advertisement appeared in a Chicago Daily Tribune advertisement on 9th October 1881.
The first mention of potato chips or crisps in Europe I have discovered, was in the Derry Journal (Ireland) on 24th September 1883.
". . . man and woman were seated at a table partaking of refreshments in the shape of coffee, bread and butter, beef steak and Saratoga chips. When they had finished both produced from some mysterious crevice in their garments, short clay pipes, and after filling . . .”
An article in the Cheltenham Examiner, (Gloucestershire, England) on 10th September 1890, included this:
“A famous bakery in New York is run by a woman, who manufactures more than half the Saratoga Chips used in the country.”
I hope I have discovered the name of the famous bakery by the time the next edition of this tome is published.
It was not until 1915, that I found the first advertisement for potato crisps in the United Kingdom, from the Portsmouth Evening News of 9th September.
Toronto based Canadians were describing the product, Real Boston Saratoga Chips in the early 1890s. This would presumably mean they were ubiquitous in the area at that time.
Miss Euler's Saratoga Chips were manufactured by The Euler-Houston Company in Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario. The following advertisement is from Toronto Saturday Night, 12th May 1906.
The oldest surviving American companies are the Leominster Potato Chip Co., now known as Tri-Sum, which was launched in 1908, in Leominster Massachusetts, and the two years younger, Mikesell's Potato Chips of Dayton, Ohio.
I would not wish to get involved in the debate, but while Tri-Sum are in their fourth generation of family ownership, and attempt to maintain their traditional approach (as seen with the up to date bag image below), Mikesell's dispute the status of, "Oldest continuous potato chip operation in the world." They have certainly moved on significantly from the oldest graphic-based newspaper advertisement I have found, from The Dayton Herald, 6th September 1928.
In Great Britain, Carter’s Crisps was first incorporated in 1900. The first record of their sale of crisps was in 1913. It is, therefore, estimable that 1913 is the registered year for the birth of the potato crisp. To add further ambiguity, Mr Carter was said to have discovered the product in France and not the United States. And to add further, further, ambiguity, as it were, when Smith's Crisps were relaunched in 1929, Sir Herbert Morgan, Frank Smith, Benjamin Brooks, and Edgar Brassington were announced as directors of Smith's Potato Crisps Ltd., and Carter's Crisps Ltd. Walkers now own Smith's Crisps, so it could be argued the UK company is the oldest.
In 2013, Spanish snack food manufacturer, Aperativos Flaper SA, registered Lesana Fritos Patatas Ricas Desde 1860. Which translates to, ‘Lesana Fried Rich Potatoes Since 1860.’ The product was relaunched using the traditional packaging with the description, “Originally from Madrid, Spain, these chips are delicately made and sold in multiple countries. Since 1860, Lesana Fritos have been producing these chips that are made with only four ingredients – So you can guarantee that they're naturally tasty.”
Aside from the US and UK, Spain appears to have more active potato chips manufacturers than most countries. The majority produce what I would describe as ‘traditional’ chips with just a little salt added, and very few other varieties. This may suggest the traditional approach has survived longer than the assumed sale of potato chips and crisps in the US or UK.
Keeping Fresh for Longer
Maintaining the product's freshness was the main impediment to volume sales. In those early years, chips and crisps were mostly presented in barrels or glass display cabinets in stores. This did not wholly restrict chips and crisps to the status of side dish or accompaniment in restaurants, they were also freshly cooked and sold in the standard food packaging bags that were available during the period, but there is no doubt the invention of reliable packaging for the product is the reason it survived as a marketable viability.
In 1920, Francis (Frank) Leigh Smith originally launched the first company to manufacture potato crisps for the mass-market in the United Kingdom. His Smith’s Potato Crisps Company packaged their wares in greaseproof bags. For flavouring purposes, they included a twist of salt in the bag. The product is still sold today.
In 1926, Laura Scudder invented a moisture-resistant, sealed bag. Her Californian Potato Chips were packed in airtight packs which were sealed by two pieces of waxed paper ironed together.
The Glassine bag came along in 1933 and enabled identifiable branding and packaging to take the product to another level. Helped in no small part by the next major pioneering milestone.
A Technical Revolution
The Continuous Fryer was invented in 1929. Up until that point in history chips and crisps were cooked in small batches in large pans called kettles. Hence, the phrase “Kettle Cooked.” A kettle was originally a large kitchen pot, but by this time it was a term used to describe large rectangular or circular constructions that were able to produce between forty and one-hundred-and-twenty pounds of chips per hour.
The JD Ferry Company of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, revolutionised the production of potato chips and crisps with their system, which took potato slices from one end of a production line, transported them through hot oil via a paddle system, before depositing them at the other end via a conveyer belt, that also aided with drying. It also enabled manufacturers to produce more thinly cut, uniform chips and crisps, in larger quantities.
The equipment was expensive, and in a growing market, it was tough to compete. Given the propensity of kettle-cooked chips today, it is perhaps surprising that the new cooking method enabled more thinly cut, crispier chips and crisps to push some smaller kettle, small-batch, or hand-cooked companies out of business. Unfortunately, the industry was still in its infancy, so diversification did not provide space in the market for two versions of a relatively new product. The mass-produced version won out and remains the preferred staple of the snack food genre to this day.
It's All in the Flavour
Potato chips and crisps were now fully equipped for their development into the world’s greatest snack food. So, what about adding some flavour?
Although there are records of seasoned and spiced potato chips in the US, it was just a case of pouring in some seasoning, invariably salt, and shaking the bag.
This remained the case until Irishman Joe 'Spud' Murphy saw a gap in the market. Murphy was a fan of potato crisps but found the available products lacking in variety and flavour. This led to his launch of Ireland’s first major crisps enterprise in 1954. The company was called Tayto and is still one of the best-known brand names in the world today.
Employee, Seamus Burke, was charged with perfecting a new flavour seasoning for their crisps. Working on what was essentially a workbench, rather than the science laboratories that are required today for such purposes, Burke’s experiments culminated in a cheese and onion variety that Joe Murphy would go on to build an empire upon.
'Taytos' also became the proprietary eponym for crisps in Ireland just as vacuum cleaners are often called 'Hoovers.' Part of the reason for this is Mr Murphy sold the Northern Ireland production rights and the Hutchinson family began to produce a similar range of products under the same trading name, completely separate from Murphy’s business.
Tayto’s seasoning was an overnight sensation and representatives of the US chip industry flew to Ireland to negotiate usage rights for the technology Tayto had developed. Among them were representatives of an organisation, under the guidance of a man that may not have invented potato chips or crisps but can be credited with making it the international multi-billion dollar snack food that it is today.
The Chipfather
By the late 1920s, dozens of potato chips companies had opened throughout the United States. Many were based in Ohio, which was also home to the Noss Pretzel & Cone Company. When Harvey F Noss left his promising career as a journalist in 1931 to join the family business, few would have imagined the role he would play in the potato chip industry’s future.
The new general office and sales manager changed the name of the company to Num Num Foods and soon invited other Ohio based potato chip companies to join a loosely arranged organisation called The Ohio Chip Association.
Within six years the Association developed into the National Potato Institute. Early aims included educating consumers and retailers about potato chips and to introduce manufacturing and quality standards nationwide. With Noss as the Institute's first president, a package quality insurance seal was assigned to members for use on their products. The "Guaranteed Quality" proclamation added a defined and professional appeal to both public and vendors alike.
Consumers had concerns that potato chips were fattening as far back as the 1930s. This prompted a campaign to address these concerns, and marketing literature included the claim that "Potato Chips are non-fattening." A detailed explanation followed, including quotes attributed to the US Department of Agriculture, and diet and nutrition phraseology the most skilled sales executive would be proud of. In essence, potato chips were wholesome and nutritious because the Institute's literature said so. The publication of Chips in 1939, added further value to the Institute's credentials in the marketplace. A year later it became Potato Chipper. The magazine is now called Snack-World.
When the US entered World War Two in 1941, revised governmental priorities saw potato chips categorised as an 'unessential item.' Many restrictions faced manufacturers and the industry feared for its future. Noss organised a committee that developed a list of thirty-two reasons why potato chips were an essential food item. The delegation went to Washington to lobby the government. Noss returned with acknowledgement that not only were potato chips an essential food item, but the industry merited sufficient raw materials and gas to continue operations throughout the War years.
Unsurprisingly, Noss was kept at the helm of the National Potato Chip Institute for a further thirty years. During this time he promoted company products, aligned manufacturers with film and TV stars for marketing purposes, and ensured members remained at the forefront of public consciousness. He also promoted technological advancements within the snack food world. In 1959, Noss led the NPCI onto the world stage. It became The Potato Chip Institute International. Two years later Noss won approval for a European regional organisation, which ultimately became the European Snack Association.
Noss retired to an honorary position in 1971, and died in 1974, but there is little doubt that through his leadership and guidance, the industry went on to become what it is today.
Chips or Crisps?
The success of the product on both sides of the Atlantic, along with both mutual and separate development, through the cooking process, packaging, and flavour development, leads us back to the nomenclature - Is the world’s favourite snack food a potato chip or a potato crisp?
There is a written record of vegetables being ‘chipped’ in the fifteenth century. Four hundred years of food evolution would suggest that by the time George Crum is said to have invented the potato chip in 1853, chipped potatoes of some variation had existed for decades if not centuries.
It is doubtful that Thomas Jefferson would have described his French discovery as anything other than Pommes de Frites, but possibly with a colloquially acceptable pronunciation or translation, emphasising the place of his discovery. Hence, perhaps, French fried potatoes, or the subsequently shortened phrase, French fries.
When George Crum, or whoever, christened his newly discovered snack, as far as he, or they, were aware, the phrase potato chips was still unused and available as a descriptive term.
Given the American propensity for abbreviations and acronyms, I am a little disappointed that they didn’t call this new creation Fried Police (fried potato slices), but there you go. What we do know is British style fish ‘n’ chips are very popular in the United States, so perhaps potato crisps would have been a better bet from the outset.
Mr Carter must have called his British company Carter’s Crisps when he registered it in 1900 for a reason, and I can only assume he was planning to develop a new product for a new market. He could not have called it potato chips because the phrase already existed in Great Britain.
Hyperbolic Paraboloids
To muddy the chips or crisps debate further, Proctor & Gamble began developing Pringles in the late 1950s. The plan was to come up with a snack to compete against, "Greasy and broken potato chips."
In 1956 chemist Fredric Baur was assigned the company's attempt to conquer the potato chip world. He developed the hyperbolic paraboloid (saddle) shape that we still see today. Baur was then promoted to another department and Alexander Liepa was introduced to complete the work.
The resulting product was a foodstuff made from 42% potato, some corn flour, wheat starch, rice flour, a bit of fat, some emulsifiers and what not. It could be described as a re-purposed or re-constituted snack food. They were christened Pringles Newfangled Potato Chips.
The public embraced the innovative product and especially loved the can, which has gone on to become an iconic symbol of the snack food world. Pringles sales were impressive. They sold well enough to prompt rival manufacturers to claim they failed to meet the definition of a potato chip. The US Food and Drug Administration agreed, and in 1975, ruled that the use of the word would be restricted to, 'Potato Chips made from dried potatoes.' What happened next was P&G came up with the brilliant idea of calling them crisps. However, in the United Kingdom, potato crisps are not considered a ‘necessary food’ and are therefore subject to Value Added Tax.
In 2008, presumably, after new lawyers studied all the previous casework thoroughly, P&G went to court to challenge the ruling that Pringles were subject to tax because they were a 'Potato Crisp Product.' The manufacturers then claimed they were not potato crisps, using the argument that they were more like a cake or a biscuit because they were manufactured from dough. Mr Justice Warren ruled that to be subject to VAT the product must be, 'Wholly, or substantially wholly, made from the potato.' The UK government was not particularly bothered what they were called, just whether they could rake taxes in from them. And they couldn’t any longer. So . . . Pringles are not potato chips. Pringles are not potato crisps. Pringles are what it says in the nutritional information box on the can.
There are around four-hundred potato chips and crisps companies in the world at present. A number that increases each year as new manufacturers enter a highly lucrative market. Many of the more successful companies have been subject to corporate takeovers or partnership investment schemes by larger groups over the years.
The world's largest potato chips manufacturer is Frito-Lay which is the main producer in many of the world's countries, including the largest markets of the United States and the United Kingdom, under the Walkers label, which is in turn, under the Pepsi-Co umbrella.
As every year passes, sales increase, companies grow, and new additions add competition. Many manufacturers have evolved to use new oils, better potatoes and currently, different vegetables and fruit. There is no evidence that the world's most popular snack food will not increase in popularity for many years to come.
I would like to say that after extensive research, including days, weeks, and months of poring over books in the world’s grandest libraries, I have discovered the origin of potato chips and crisps - The first instance of the world's favourite snack food's creation. I would like to, but I can’t, and had I uncovered that first reference it would prove an unreliable marker in time, as it may not directly relate to thinly sliced potatoes comparable to modern-day chips and crisps, without detailed specification.
The potato was first domesticated as an edible food between 8,000 and 5,000 BC in what is now southern Peru and North Western Bolivia. People across the world extracted vegetable oils from a variety of foodstuffs for cooking purposes thousands of years ago. Soy oil has been traced back to 2,000 BC in China. Southern Europeans were producing olive oil by 3,000 BC. In parts of the Americas, peanuts and sunflower seeds were roasted and beaten into a paste before boiling. The oil that rose to the surface was then skimmed off.
As the earliest relationship between any variation of cooking oil and potatoes could not possibly be presumed, I was left to return to the earliest recorded publication of thinly sliced potatoes cooked in oil.
Potatoes Fried in Slices or Shavings
Peel large potatoes: Slice them about a quarter of an inch thick, or cut them in shavings round and round, as you would peel a lemon; dry them well in a clean cloth and fry them in lard or dripping. Take care that your fat and frying-pan are quite clean; put it on a quick fire, watch it, and as soon as the lard boils, and is still, put in the slices of potato, and keep moving them till they are crisp. Take them up and lay them to drain on a sieve: send them up with a very little salt sprinkled over them.
Title: The Cook’s Oracle
Author: William Kitchiner
Year: 1817
To Fry Sliced Potatos
Peel large potatos, slice them about a quarter of an inch thick, or cut them in shavings round and round, as you would peel a lemon; dry them well in a clean cloth, and fry them in lard or dripping. Take care that your fat and frying-pan are quite clean; put it on a quick fire, watch it, and as soon as the lard boils and is still, put in the slices of potatos, and keep moving them till they are crisp; take them up, and lay them to drain on a sieve; send them up with very little salt sprinkled on them.
Title: The Virginia Housewife
Author: Mary Randolph
Year: 1824
Fried Potatoes
Peel a pound of potatoes, cut them into very thin slices, almost shavings; put some fat into a frying-pan; when very hot, but not burning, throw the slices in, not too many at a time, as they will stick together; move them about with a skimmer, to prevent it. When a nice brown colour, take them out, and sprinkle some salt over; serve them up separate, or over broiled meat. Two inches of fat ought to be in the pan.
Title: A Shilling Cookery for the People
Author: Alexis Benoit Soyer
Year: 1854
Putting Mary Randolph’s plagiarism aside, William Kitchiner’s book includes a chapter on frying and another on potato preparation that includes no less than sixteen variations, including the following.
Potatoes Fried Whole
When nearly boiled enough, as directed in No. 102, put them into a stew-pan with a bit of butter, or some nice clean beef-drippings; shake them about often (for fear of burning them), till they are brown and crisp; drain them from the fat. Obs.—It will be an elegant improvement to the last three receipts, previous to frying or broiling the potatoes, to flour them and dip them in the yelk of an egg, and then roll them in fine-sifted bread-crumbs; they will then deserve to be called POTATOES FULL DRESSED.
The capitalisation of the final phrase perhaps suggests this may be a unique, or at that time, untitled recipe. The inclusion of so many preparation methods, all of which are commonly used today, also suggests that frying thinly cut potatoes was just part of the recipe crowd. Nothing new here, move on. The recipe for potatoes fried in slices or shavings enjoyed no more emphasis than mashed potatoes. Given the complicated and extraordinary array of recipes created during that period - Kitchiner included no less than sixteen recipes for ketchup in his tome - It is not a stretch of the imagination to assume sliced and fried potato shavings was a common dish.
My quest for the origins of today's potato chip or crisp unveiled a distinct pattern. Where no proof of origin or historical timelines exist for popular or common foods, apocryphal tales and legends abound. Fried potatoes have great stories of their own. They also throw new questions into the mix, one of which I have already alluded to. The other - Are they potato chips or potato crisps? And for that matter, where do French fries come into it?
Thomas Jefferson was a Founding Father of the United States and its third president. Leaving the Louisiana Purchase and his part in the Declaration of Independence to one side for the moment, I would argue one of his most notable contributions to modern-day American society was his alleged introduction of a foodstuff almost everyone that has subsequently lived in his country, has eaten.
The United States Snack Food Association claims that it was while serving as Ambassador to France during the 1780s that Jefferson first discovered French fries. According to SNAC, he loved nothing more than to serve them to his guests at his house in Monticello, after his return from Europe. While SNAC might have us conjure images of Jefferson swatting John Adams away, “Stop bothering me John, this is a hot kettle of oil and I have promised the first batch to George,” it all appears a bit too convenient. Not quite North Korean State News Agency reports that the lair of a unicorn once ridden by an ancestor of Kim Jong-Un, had been discovered, but given the number of established recipes already discussed, it all sounds a little too spurious.
The George Crum Legend
If Thomas Jefferson introduced French fries to the USA and therefore to the world’s attention, it will come as little surprise that an American has also been credited with the invention of the potato chip.
Saratoga Springs was a summer playground for the rich and famous. Socialites flocked together for the ‘season’ and it appears their modern-day equivalent of a celebrity or Michelin star chef, was George Crum. Crum’s skills as a hunter fisherman and guide were much sought after, and later in life, so were his culinary skills.
Unlike other descendants of Native American or African ancestors, much of Crum’s life is recorded. Despite being unable to read or write, he built a not inconsiderable fortune, a reputation among the gentry, and served senators, and even presidents, in his restaurant.
A condensed version of his tale reads something like this: During a hot and balmy 1853 summer’s afternoon, Crum, a chef at Cary Moon’s Lake Lodge Restaurant, was a bit hot and bothered. A fussy diner had sent a dish of French fried potatoes back to the kitchen for being sliced too thickly – More than once. The cook was having a bad day, so he sliced the next batch so thinly that, “The fork could not skewer them.” Rather than expressing further dissatisfaction the diner was overjoyed and ordered more.
The setting for this story and many similar tales is Moon’s Lake House, one of several impressive establishments in the Saratoga Springs and Ballston Spa areas. I should say at this juncture that none of these stories were reported until owners, Cary and Harriet Moon, placed their property up for sale in 1885.
In 2009, TJ Stiles published The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt. Within his book, Stiles included a mention of crispy fried potatoes that the legendary shipping magnate enjoyed as far back as 1849. This was before the Moon’s operated the Lake House and four years before Crum allegedly invented them.
Jefferson Williamson’s 1930 book, American Hotel included the first exploration of the Crum legend.
“This appetizing dainty gets its name from the fact that it was accidentally invented in the early 1850s at the old Montgomery Hall, kept by Carey E. Moon, at Saratoga. Legend has it that in 1853 George Crum, the chef; got an order from a fastidious diner to cut his French fried potatoes thinner. In a spirit of sarcasm, Crum sliced off a sheet of potato as thin as a wafer and dropped it into the hot fat of a frying pan. A few minutes later he fished it out and ate it. So good did it taste that he fried a few more slices, sharing them with his assistants, and with Mrs. Carey Moon, who had a quantity of them fried and put into paper cornucopias for the guests. The chips won favor at once and within a few years became an established viand throughout the country.”
Other references between those periods were scant, but since that time a variety of variations have appeared, including within this 1906 profile of Crum’s sister Kate Wicks, in the Saratogian Journal.
“If it had not been for Mrs. Catherine Ann Wicks, the world might never have enjoyed the crisp delicacies known as Saratoga Chips. It was many years ago while employed as a cook at Moon’s Lake House that she conceived of the idea of slicing potatoes to a tissue paper thinness and frying them in deep fat. Saratoga chips went fare to make Moon’s resort famous.”
These observations are somewhat undermined by the following from the New York Herald, 2nd August 1849.
“…while the fame of “Eliza, the cook,” for crisping potatoes has become so wide that she has frequent offers to take places of profit in the city, where her talents in this respect may be made effective. A queer way to build up a reputation, you will say; but it is nevertheless true, that “Eliza’s” potato frying reputation is one of the prominent matters of remark at Saratoga, and scores of people visit the lake and carry away specimens of the vegetable, as prepared by her, as curiosities. Ladies frequently pay her a handsome fee for the privilege of witnessing the mode of operation, pursued by her, so that they may instruct their cooks at home. Eliza always takes the fee and pleasantly enough imparts the theoretic knowledge necessary for potato frying; but no lady has, as yet, been able to teach the art to her cooks at home. Who would think that simple potatoes could be made such a luxury! and yet, Eliza is not proud of her reputation; she is not puffed up with pride; she cooks on during the summer and has numerous standing offers to cook for nabobs of the city, at large wages, during the winter. Who knows how many of her children, or children’s children, will here-after drive tandem to Lake Saratoga, to eat trout, woodcock, and fried potatoes, under the same roof where she is now engaged in acquiring laurels.”
There was a lake house owned by Loomis & Co. I would suspect Eliza was Eliza Loomis, although there is a theory that it could be an African American cook with the same forename. This is where we find consistency and inconsistency. The first person to cook what we now know as potato chips or crisps remains speculation, but if this is the inconsistency, it is opposed by a factor that seems to repeat consistently in most storytelling.
George and Eliza Loomis began operating the Lake House in 1841. Five years later, a fire destroyed the building. The couple rebuilt the property with partners, and after George died in 1849, Eliza continued the business with other family members.
The Loomis family sold their interests to Cary and Harriet Moon in 1854, a year after the alleged invention of the world’s favourite snack food. This does, however, provide us with the consistency – The place of birth. Most variations of the story repeat Moon’s Lake House, and its reputation for this delicacy grew quickly.
On 7th September 1860, The New York Times included the following account.
“Before coming to Saratoga I encountered a young lady who had just completed the tour of Niagara Falls and the White Mountains. To the question of what she had seen and found worth mentioning during her travels, she replied that the fried potatoes at Saratoga Lake were delightful. In the course of an hour’s conversation you could pump nothing from her but fried potatoes. The same enthusiasm prevails with everyone you meet. The livery-keeper urges you to hire a horse and ride or drive to the lake, and his main argument is ‘Fried Potatoes’.”
As the reputation of Moon’s Lake House grew and stories of their Saratoga Chips spread, it is unsurprising that the Moons claimed credit themselves. If this has led to the legend’s ambiguity it is nothing compared to the cast of potential inventors.
It is hard to say how Kate Wicks or George Crum entered the list. Apart from selling game and fish to the Moon’s, Crum does not appear to have any further relationship with the business. It could be as simple as marketing for Crum’s successful restaurant, his reputation as a chef, and the important people he regularly cooked for. He may also have supplied, or even worked for the Loomis’ before the 1853 point in time.
Other plausible Saratoga Chip inventors include, ‘Old’ Flora, a black woman who was said to have cooked them for many years before moving to Saratoga Springs. An unnamed ‘Coloured Auntie,’ who was said to have been cooking the delicacy as early as the 1830s. Hiram Thomas, an African American cook from New Orleans, who cooked at Moon’s Lake House. Emeline or Susan Jones (could be one person or two), who were also southern cooks that worked at Moon’s. Peter Francis, one-time mentor and brother-in-law of George Crum. Or an unnamed ‘Southern Mammy,’ who assisted Harriet Moon.
To summarise, I believe the fussy customer and the accidental discovery story are both plausible versions of the actual invention, but conversely, I cannot believe no-one before had ever placed thinly cut slices of potatoes in a bubbling pot of oil, even if accidentally.
I believe there is sufficient evidence to suggest the Saratoga Chip began life at Loomis’ Lake House, and possibly, in the late 1840s. It is certainly clear that the sale of cornucopias of these chips grew the reputation of the same Lake House under the Moons, for decades. I would go as far as saying the coverage received during the Moon's ownership led to the widespread development, and perhaps existence, of the product we eat today.
I am afraid we may never know the inventor. Not just because potatoes had possibly been eaten this way for many years, but because there is no recorded certainty. Having read much of the research material available, I would guess it would have been one of two people: Eliza Loomis, or an unnamed or specified African American cook, who would have been working in Mrs Loomis’ kitchen at that time.
Nevertheless, the Crum story is the generally accepted origin of what Americans now call the potato chip. Legends are often born through the illusory truth effect, or repeating stories so often they are considered fact. The internet is rife with variations of the tale of George Crum, and worldwide newspapers adore the story, often citing it as fact.
Historians date fried potatoes to around 1680 when Belgian housewives replaced limited fish stocks with the vegetable, after the Meuse River froze during a cold winter.
By the 1830s, fried potatoes were ubiquitous among London’s poor. There are also references to early fish and chips shops. In 1837, Charles Dickens referred to a “fried fish warehouse” in Oliver Twist.
John K Walton, the author of Fish and Chips and the British Working Class, 1870-1940, wrote, “We don’t really know who was first. Several places popped up around 1860 and nobody knew at the time that something important was beginning.” It could have been a thirteen-year-old East London resident called Joseph Malin, who was said to have sold fried fish and chips before opening a shop in 1860, but there is also an impressive blue plaque in Oldham claiming the same year.
By 1910, there were around 25,000 fish and chip shops in the UK. Is it a stretch of the imagination to believe half a century passed by without a version of the Saratoga Chip being experimented with?
Most pertinent to this analysis is the word ‘chips’ is used as the fish accompaniment rather than French fries. As the Napoleonic wars did not conclude until 1815, the Great British public would have almost certainly rejected this cultural reference.
However, even if something already existed it does not mean someone should not be empowered to shout, “Eureka,” and claim it as their own, and as the legend of George Crum is so well crafted who am I to argue?
It does not solve the nomenclature issues, but as with the Jefferson tale, it does provide a neatly packaged historical reference point for what is now the world’s most popular snack food product.
Early Pioneers
Whatever the truth of the George Crum legend, it took a further decade or so before we find the launch of America's first potato chips company. The John Boyd Company began in 1868 and sold chips to Massachusetts stores. Reliable records are inconclusive, but others would have surely replicated this cottage industry approach during the late nineteenth century. It would be speculation to presume earlier companies existed, but as soon as Saratoga Chips were cooked, demand was created, and history tells us companies always emerge to supply such demand.
US newspaper archives include a variety of titles from the 1870s with similar recipes that include Saratoga chips as a side dish. The Morning Journal, (New Haven, Connecticut, USA), date: 21st December 1880, features the first published company advertisement I have found. I would presume Messrs. Gilbert & Thompson was a grocery store or supplier. Although G Ramsay of Alexandria, Virginia (USA), did take a one-line advertisement out in the Alexandria Gazette on 28th September 1878, declaring that he sold Saratoga chips.
The first purveyor of chips I have found that lists a company name with Saratoga or Potato Chips in the registered title itself, was the Chicago Saratoga Chip Co. An advertisement appeared in a Chicago Daily Tribune advertisement on 9th October 1881.
The first mention of potato chips or crisps in Europe I have discovered, was in the Derry Journal (Ireland) on 24th September 1883.
". . . man and woman were seated at a table partaking of refreshments in the shape of coffee, bread and butter, beef steak and Saratoga chips. When they had finished both produced from some mysterious crevice in their garments, short clay pipes, and after filling . . .”
An article in the Cheltenham Examiner, (Gloucestershire, England) on 10th September 1890, included this:
“A famous bakery in New York is run by a woman, who manufactures more than half the Saratoga Chips used in the country.”
I hope I have discovered the name of the famous bakery by the time the next edition of this tome is published.
It was not until 1915, that I found the first advertisement for potato crisps in the United Kingdom, from the Portsmouth Evening News of 9th September.
Toronto based Canadians were describing the product, Real Boston Saratoga Chips in the early 1890s. This would presumably mean they were ubiquitous in the area at that time.
Miss Euler's Saratoga Chips were manufactured by The Euler-Houston Company in Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario. The following advertisement is from Toronto Saturday Night, 12th May 1906.
The oldest surviving American companies are the Leominster Potato Chip Co., now known as Tri-Sum, which was launched in 1908, in Leominster Massachusetts, and the two years younger, Mikesell's Potato Chips of Dayton, Ohio.
I would not wish to get involved in the debate, but while Tri-Sum are in their fourth generation of family ownership, and attempt to maintain their traditional approach (as seen with the up to date bag image below), Mikesell's dispute the status of, "Oldest continuous potato chip operation in the world." They have certainly moved on significantly from the oldest graphic-based newspaper advertisement I have found, from The Dayton Herald, 6th September 1928.
In Great Britain, Carter’s Crisps was first incorporated in 1900. The first record of their sale of crisps was in 1913. It is, therefore, estimable that 1913 is the registered year for the birth of the potato crisp. To add further ambiguity, Mr Carter was said to have discovered the product in France and not the United States. And to add further, further, ambiguity, as it were, when Smith's Crisps were relaunched in 1929, Sir Herbert Morgan, Frank Smith, Benjamin Brooks, and Edgar Brassington were announced as directors of Smith's Potato Crisps Ltd., and Carter's Crisps Ltd. Walkers now own Smith's Crisps, so it could be argued the UK company is the oldest.
In 2013, Spanish snack food manufacturer, Aperativos Flaper SA, registered Lesana Fritos Patatas Ricas Desde 1860. Which translates to, ‘Lesana Fried Rich Potatoes Since 1860.’ The product was relaunched using the traditional packaging with the description, “Originally from Madrid, Spain, these chips are delicately made and sold in multiple countries. Since 1860, Lesana Fritos have been producing these chips that are made with only four ingredients – So you can guarantee that they're naturally tasty.”
Aside from the US and UK, Spain appears to have more active potato chips manufacturers than most countries. The majority produce what I would describe as ‘traditional’ chips with just a little salt added, and very few other varieties. This may suggest the traditional approach has survived longer than the assumed sale of potato chips and crisps in the US or UK.
Keeping Fresh for Longer
Maintaining the product's freshness was the main impediment to volume sales. In those early years, chips and crisps were mostly presented in barrels or glass display cabinets in stores. This did not wholly restrict chips and crisps to the status of side dish or accompaniment in restaurants, they were also freshly cooked and sold in the standard food packaging bags that were available during the period, but there is no doubt the invention of reliable packaging for the product is the reason it survived as a marketable viability.
In 1920, Francis (Frank) Leigh Smith originally launched the first company to manufacture potato crisps for the mass-market in the United Kingdom. His Smith’s Potato Crisps Company packaged their wares in greaseproof bags. For flavouring purposes, they included a twist of salt in the bag. The product is still sold today.
In 1926, Laura Scudder invented a moisture-resistant, sealed bag. Her Californian Potato Chips were packed in airtight packs which were sealed by two pieces of waxed paper ironed together.
The Glassine bag came along in 1933 and enabled identifiable branding and packaging to take the product to another level. Helped in no small part by the next major pioneering milestone.
A Technical Revolution
The Continuous Fryer was invented in 1929. Up until that point in history chips and crisps were cooked in small batches in large pans called kettles. Hence, the phrase “Kettle Cooked.” A kettle was originally a large kitchen pot, but by this time it was a term used to describe large rectangular or circular constructions that were able to produce between forty and one-hundred-and-twenty pounds of chips per hour.
The JD Ferry Company of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, revolutionised the production of potato chips and crisps with their system, which took potato slices from one end of a production line, transported them through hot oil via a paddle system, before depositing them at the other end via a conveyer belt, that also aided with drying. It also enabled manufacturers to produce more thinly cut, uniform chips and crisps, in larger quantities.
The equipment was expensive, and in a growing market, it was tough to compete. Given the propensity of kettle-cooked chips today, it is perhaps surprising that the new cooking method enabled more thinly cut, crispier chips and crisps to push some smaller kettle, small-batch, or hand-cooked companies out of business. Unfortunately, the industry was still in its infancy, so diversification did not provide space in the market for two versions of a relatively new product. The mass-produced version won out and remains the preferred staple of the snack food genre to this day.
It's All in the Flavour
Potato chips and crisps were now fully equipped for their development into the world’s greatest snack food. So, what about adding some flavour?
Although there are records of seasoned and spiced potato chips in the US, it was just a case of pouring in some seasoning, invariably salt, and shaking the bag.
This remained the case until Irishman Joe 'Spud' Murphy saw a gap in the market. Murphy was a fan of potato crisps but found the available products lacking in variety and flavour. This led to his launch of Ireland’s first major crisps enterprise in 1954. The company was called Tayto and is still one of the best-known brand names in the world today.
Employee, Seamus Burke, was charged with perfecting a new flavour seasoning for their crisps. Working on what was essentially a workbench, rather than the science laboratories that are required today for such purposes, Burke’s experiments culminated in a cheese and onion variety that Joe Murphy would go on to build an empire upon.
'Taytos' also became the proprietary eponym for crisps in Ireland just as vacuum cleaners are often called 'Hoovers.' Part of the reason for this is Mr Murphy sold the Northern Ireland production rights and the Hutchinson family began to produce a similar range of products under the same trading name, completely separate from Murphy’s business.
Tayto’s seasoning was an overnight sensation and representatives of the US chip industry flew to Ireland to negotiate usage rights for the technology Tayto had developed. Among them were representatives of an organisation, under the guidance of a man that may not have invented potato chips or crisps but can be credited with making it the international multi-billion dollar snack food that it is today.
The Chipfather
By the late 1920s, dozens of potato chips companies had opened throughout the United States. Many were based in Ohio, which was also home to the Noss Pretzel & Cone Company. When Harvey F Noss left his promising career as a journalist in 1931 to join the family business, few would have imagined the role he would play in the potato chip industry’s future.
The new general office and sales manager changed the name of the company to Num Num Foods and soon invited other Ohio based potato chip companies to join a loosely arranged organisation called The Ohio Chip Association.
Within six years the Association developed into the National Potato Institute. Early aims included educating consumers and retailers about potato chips and to introduce manufacturing and quality standards nationwide. With Noss as the Institute's first president, a package quality insurance seal was assigned to members for use on their products. The "Guaranteed Quality" proclamation added a defined and professional appeal to both public and vendors alike.
Consumers had concerns that potato chips were fattening as far back as the 1930s. This prompted a campaign to address these concerns, and marketing literature included the claim that "Potato Chips are non-fattening." A detailed explanation followed, including quotes attributed to the US Department of Agriculture, and diet and nutrition phraseology the most skilled sales executive would be proud of. In essence, potato chips were wholesome and nutritious because the Institute's literature said so. The publication of Chips in 1939, added further value to the Institute's credentials in the marketplace. A year later it became Potato Chipper. The magazine is now called Snack-World.
When the US entered World War Two in 1941, revised governmental priorities saw potato chips categorised as an 'unessential item.' Many restrictions faced manufacturers and the industry feared for its future. Noss organised a committee that developed a list of thirty-two reasons why potato chips were an essential food item. The delegation went to Washington to lobby the government. Noss returned with acknowledgement that not only were potato chips an essential food item, but the industry merited sufficient raw materials and gas to continue operations throughout the War years.
Unsurprisingly, Noss was kept at the helm of the National Potato Chip Institute for a further thirty years. During this time he promoted company products, aligned manufacturers with film and TV stars for marketing purposes, and ensured members remained at the forefront of public consciousness. He also promoted technological advancements within the snack food world. In 1959, Noss led the NPCI onto the world stage. It became The Potato Chip Institute International. Two years later Noss won approval for a European regional organisation, which ultimately became the European Snack Association.
Noss retired to an honorary position in 1971, and died in 1974, but there is little doubt that through his leadership and guidance, the industry went on to become what it is today.
Chips or Crisps?
The success of the product on both sides of the Atlantic, along with both mutual and separate development, through the cooking process, packaging, and flavour development, leads us back to the nomenclature - Is the world’s favourite snack food a potato chip or a potato crisp?
There is a written record of vegetables being ‘chipped’ in the fifteenth century. Four hundred years of food evolution would suggest that by the time George Crum is said to have invented the potato chip in 1853, chipped potatoes of some variation had existed for decades if not centuries.
It is doubtful that Thomas Jefferson would have described his French discovery as anything other than Pommes de Frites, but possibly with a colloquially acceptable pronunciation or translation, emphasising the place of his discovery. Hence, perhaps, French fried potatoes, or the subsequently shortened phrase, French fries.
When George Crum, or whoever, christened his newly discovered snack, as far as he, or they, were aware, the phrase potato chips was still unused and available as a descriptive term.
Given the American propensity for abbreviations and acronyms, I am a little disappointed that they didn’t call this new creation Fried Police (fried potato slices), but there you go. What we do know is British style fish ‘n’ chips are very popular in the United States, so perhaps potato crisps would have been a better bet from the outset.
Mr Carter must have called his British company Carter’s Crisps when he registered it in 1900 for a reason, and I can only assume he was planning to develop a new product for a new market. He could not have called it potato chips because the phrase already existed in Great Britain.
Hyperbolic Paraboloids
To muddy the chips or crisps debate further, Proctor & Gamble began developing Pringles in the late 1950s. The plan was to come up with a snack to compete against, "Greasy and broken potato chips."
In 1956 chemist Fredric Baur was assigned the company's attempt to conquer the potato chip world. He developed the hyperbolic paraboloid (saddle) shape that we still see today. Baur was then promoted to another department and Alexander Liepa was introduced to complete the work.
The resulting product was a foodstuff made from 42% potato, some corn flour, wheat starch, rice flour, a bit of fat, some emulsifiers and what not. It could be described as a re-purposed or re-constituted snack food. They were christened Pringles Newfangled Potato Chips.
The public embraced the innovative product and especially loved the can, which has gone on to become an iconic symbol of the snack food world. Pringles sales were impressive. They sold well enough to prompt rival manufacturers to claim they failed to meet the definition of a potato chip. The US Food and Drug Administration agreed, and in 1975, ruled that the use of the word would be restricted to, 'Potato Chips made from dried potatoes.' What happened next was P&G came up with the brilliant idea of calling them crisps. However, in the United Kingdom, potato crisps are not considered a ‘necessary food’ and are therefore subject to Value Added Tax.
In 2008, presumably, after new lawyers studied all the previous casework thoroughly, P&G went to court to challenge the ruling that Pringles were subject to tax because they were a 'Potato Crisp Product.' The manufacturers then claimed they were not potato crisps, using the argument that they were more like a cake or a biscuit because they were manufactured from dough. Mr Justice Warren ruled that to be subject to VAT the product must be, 'Wholly, or substantially wholly, made from the potato.' The UK government was not particularly bothered what they were called, just whether they could rake taxes in from them. And they couldn’t any longer. So . . . Pringles are not potato chips. Pringles are not potato crisps. Pringles are what it says in the nutritional information box on the can.
There are around four-hundred potato chips and crisps companies in the world at present. A number that increases each year as new manufacturers enter a highly lucrative market. Many of the more successful companies have been subject to corporate takeovers or partnership investment schemes by larger groups over the years.
The world's largest potato chips manufacturer is Frito-Lay which is the main producer in many of the world's countries, including the largest markets of the United States and the United Kingdom, under the Walkers label, which is in turn, under the Pepsi-Co umbrella.
As every year passes, sales increase, companies grow, and new additions add competition. Many manufacturers have evolved to use new oils, better potatoes and currently, different vegetables and fruit. There is no evidence that the world's most popular snack food will not increase in popularity for many years to come.