In 1908 Australian Fred Walker, who was exporting canned butter and unpasteurised cheese to Asia, was striving to produce a shelf-stable cheese. His chief chemist Dr Cyril Percy Callister brought to Walker's attention the patent taken out by James L Kraft in the United States for the emulsification and processing of cheese. Both innovative by nature and with sound business acumen, Fred Walker and James Kraft had much in common.
James Lewis Kraft, born in 1874 on a farm near Ontario, was the second of 11 children brought up with the religious teachings of his Mennonite parents. At the age of 18, he took a job at Ferguson's grocery store in Fort Erie, and later invested in a cheese company in Buffalo. He went to Chicago, Illinois, to look after the company branch in that city, and while there, his partners eased him out of the business.
Stranded in Chicago in 1903 with US$65 in capital, he put his knowledge of merchandising to good use. He obtained a horse (called Paddy) and wagon, and every day bought cheeses in the wholesale warehouse district of the city and resold them to small stores, saving the merchants the task of making the trip. The business began to prosper, and by 1909, several of his brothers had joined the company as permanent employees: Charles H, John H, Fred and Norman. In that year the business was incorporated under the name of JL Kraft & Bros Co, with James L Kraft as president.
James Kraft's early experience with cheese instilled in him the desire to improve, or change, certain qualities in cheese to give it a longer shelf life and more uniform flavor. Until that time cheddar cheese, which was the most widely sold variety in the United States, either moulded or dried quickly so there was excessive waste. It also varied greatly in taste, much of it having a strong or bitter flavour that was unpalatable.
From the small beginnings of selling a few standard varieties of cheese wholesale, the company was distributing within a few years some 30 varieties of cheese packaged under the brand names of Kraft and Elkhorn, and by 1914 the cheeses were available in most towns across the United States. The company also began to manufacture its own products, including new and traditional varieties of cheese. Most of its new cheeses were packaged in glass jars or in foil-wrapped packages.
As a result of constant experimentation throughout the years to give cheese longer lasting qualities, James Kraft's major contribution to the cheese industry in America was processed cheese. His work resulted in a product that could be packaged without waste, maintain a uniform quality, and be sold in convenient sizes.
He sold US$5,000 worth of pasteurised cheese in tins in 1915, the first lots going to India and Asia. The next year sales went up to US$150,000. The new product was ideal for shipment over long distances, and the US Government ordered more than 6 million pounds of Kraft cheese in tins to feed soldiers during World War I.
A patent for what became known as processed cheese ('process cheese' in America) was granted to Kraft in 1916. The Phenix Cheese Company (famous for its Philadelphia cream cheese) had been working on a similar process to produce Swiss Gruy?re cheese but did not file its patent in time. However, in 1921 James Kraft agreed to share the patent rights and in 1928 the two companies were united as the Kraft-Phenix Cheese Corporation.
The rapid growth of the company prompted Kraft to extend its production into other areas of the United States. Later the company had cheese production facilities in 23 states and the production efforts of farmers' cooperatives in others. After the processed cheese was launched on a national scale, Kraft added to its line the mass production of such specialty cheeses such as Edam, Gouda and blue cheese.
In 1920, Kraft purchased MacLaren's Imperial Cheese Co Ltd and began selling processed cheese in tins and loaves in Canada on a national scale. The Canadian company was used to export Kraft products to Europe until operations were established in England and Germany. James Kraft and Fred Walker met in August 1925, and in 1926 the Kraft Walker Cheese Company in Australia was formed.
From its earliest days, the rapid and continued growth of what was to become the world's second largest food company was brought about by its new product development and the use of innovative advertising methods. James Kraft was an early user of all communications media and, as early as 1911, was advertising on Chicago elevated trains, using outdoor billboards and mailing circulars to retail grocers. He was among the first to advertise in consumer journals and to use coloured advertisements in national magazines.
In 1933, the company started to use radio on an extensive scale. It sponsored the one-hour weekly musical and variety show 'Kraft Musical Review', which headlined notable show business personalities. New products such as Miracle Whip salad dressing (1933), Kraft macaroni and cheese dinner (1936), and Parkay margarine (1937) were introduced through the 'Kraft Music Hall' and became immediate favorites. During those years the company also added to its line Kraft caramels, marshmallows, and jams and jellies.
While in his seventies, James Kraft helped create one of the first major television programs, the 'Kraft Television Theatre', which was said to have set audience and studio production records. The show ran from 1947 until 1958.
James Kraft died in Chicago in 1953, survived by his wife Pauline and daughter Edith. Like Fred Walker, James Kraft had a genius for picking the right person for the job, an unerring executive ability and a personal aptitude for unceasing work. The company that still bears his name continues to go from strength to strength.