Ovson Egg
Encyclopedia
Ovson Egg was an American
food processing company founded in 1919 to provide frozen, canned and dried eggs to manufacturers of products such as cookies, cakes, custards, egg noodles, beverages, ice cream, macaroni, mayonnaise, salad dressing and puddings. The National Dairy Products Corporation became a majority investor in the company in 1929, and it became part of Kraft Foods
in 1952.
. George Dole
, who owned one of the first cold storage facilities in the United States, and former school teacher H. J. Keith were the first to open an egg-breaking business, the H.J. Keith Company. They also began separating yolks from whites and selling them as separate products. In 1898, Keith made a deal with H. A. Perry of Salinas, Kansas. Perry was the founder of Seymour Foods, and had invented a hand-operated yolk-and-white separator which dramatically improved productivity. Keith licensed this technology from Perry and dramatically increased production.
Morris Ovson was a Russia
n citizen who emigrated to the United States in 1904 and became an American citizen in 1909. Ovson found employment as an egg candler
for the H.J. Keith Company. In time, Ovson became a processing operations inspector and opened new production and processing facilities for the company. Keith also sent Ovson to Europe to learn how to produced dried eggs. In 1917, Keith sent Morris to Shanghai
to open a new dried and frozen egg production company, the Amos Bird Company (which became part of the The Borden Food Corporation).
But Ovson did not want to move to China. He had married the former Ida Karelitz in 1910, and the couple had three young sons (Leo, Gene, and Hank). Leo and Gene joined Morris into the frozen egg business. Morris Ovson returned to the United States in 1919, formed a business partnership with Keith, and founded the Ovson-Keith Egg Company. To secure additional capital, C. J. Bowman and W. F. Priebe became investors and associates in the firm, and the company name was changed to the Bowman-Priebe-Ovson Company.
for "Mocoyolk" (U.S. Patent No. 1,429,559), a product which is 95 percent yolk and 5 percernt glycerine which helps preserve the consistency of egg and keeps baked products moist.
In 1929, the Bowman-Priebe-Ovson Company was reorganized and became the Ovson Egg Company. Financial difficulties created by the Great Depression
led the National Dairy Products Corporation (now Kraft Foods
) to invest in the company and take a non-controlling majority interest in the firm.
(which became part of Nabisco
and eventually Kraft Foods) and the Ovson Egg Company. Ovson Egg had seven plants, located in Chicago, Illinois; St. Louis, Missouri
; Dallas, Texas
; Davenport, Iowa
; Moberly, Missouri
; Great Bend, Kansas
; and Parsons, Kansas
. The Shanghai plant was the largest egg processing facility in Asia.
As the demand for eggs products soared during World War II
, Ovson Egg's profits soared. Ovson Egg was one of the few American firms which manufactured dried and powdered eggs, and it became a significant supplier of egg products to the U.S. military.
In 1948, Leo and Morris Ovson opened an Ovson Egg plant in Neosho, Missouri
. The plant was built by R. A. Haas, owner of Haas Cold Storage. Haas leased space to Ovson Egg, and Haas Cold Storage handled the processed eggs.
Shortly after the Kraft purchase, Morris and Leo Ovson were indicted on June 14, 1955, for perjury
in a labor
racketeering investigation. Both men lied to a federal grand jury about giving money to Joseph Glimco
, president of Local 777 of the Taxicab Drivers Union, and to Max Podolsky, a union organizer
for the Egg Inspectors Union. Joseph and Max were involved in the buying, selling, inspection and moving of eggs at the Fulton Street Egg Market in Chicago, one of the nation's largest egg trading boards. William Holloway, an accountant for Ovson Egg, was also indicted. Morris Ovson agreed to plead guilty to one charge in exchange for the district attorney dropping two additional charges against him and the lone charge against Leo Ovson. Due to his age, poor health, and retirement from the frozen egg business, Morris Ovson was not sentenced to prison but only to one year of probation.
Morris Ovson died in 1961 at the age of 77.
, Kansas City, Missouri
and Shanghai. Ovson Egg provides products almost exclusively for use by other Kraft subsidiaries.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
food processing company founded in 1919 to provide frozen, canned and dried eggs to manufacturers of products such as cookies, cakes, custards, egg noodles, beverages, ice cream, macaroni, mayonnaise, salad dressing and puddings. The National Dairy Products Corporation became a majority investor in the company in 1929, and it became part of Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods Inc. is an American confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate. It markets many brands in more than 170 countries. 12 of its brands annually earn more than $1 billion worldwide: Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident, Tang...
in 1952.
Founding
Breaking and freezing of eggs began in U.S. in the 1890s in Minneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
. George Dole
George Dole
George Stuart Dole was an American sport wrestler who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics.In 1908 he won the gold medal in the freestyle featherweight class.-External links:*...
, who owned one of the first cold storage facilities in the United States, and former school teacher H. J. Keith were the first to open an egg-breaking business, the H.J. Keith Company. They also began separating yolks from whites and selling them as separate products. In 1898, Keith made a deal with H. A. Perry of Salinas, Kansas. Perry was the founder of Seymour Foods, and had invented a hand-operated yolk-and-white separator which dramatically improved productivity. Keith licensed this technology from Perry and dramatically increased production.
Morris Ovson was a Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n citizen who emigrated to the United States in 1904 and became an American citizen in 1909. Ovson found employment as an egg candler
Candling
Candling is a method used in embryology to study the growth and development of an embryo inside an egg. The method uses a bright light source behind the egg to show details through the shell, and is so called because the original sources of light used were candles.The technique of using light to...
for the H.J. Keith Company. In time, Ovson became a processing operations inspector and opened new production and processing facilities for the company. Keith also sent Ovson to Europe to learn how to produced dried eggs. In 1917, Keith sent Morris to Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
to open a new dried and frozen egg production company, the Amos Bird Company (which became part of the The Borden Food Corporation).
But Ovson did not want to move to China. He had married the former Ida Karelitz in 1910, and the couple had three young sons (Leo, Gene, and Hank). Leo and Gene joined Morris into the frozen egg business. Morris Ovson returned to the United States in 1919, formed a business partnership with Keith, and founded the Ovson-Keith Egg Company. To secure additional capital, C. J. Bowman and W. F. Priebe became investors and associates in the firm, and the company name was changed to the Bowman-Priebe-Ovson Company.
1920s
On September 19, 1922, Morris Ovson was awarded a patentPatent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
for "Mocoyolk" (U.S. Patent No. 1,429,559), a product which is 95 percent yolk and 5 percernt glycerine which helps preserve the consistency of egg and keeps baked products moist.
In 1929, the Bowman-Priebe-Ovson Company was reorganized and became the Ovson Egg Company. Financial difficulties created by the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
led the National Dairy Products Corporation (now Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods Inc. is an American confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate. It markets many brands in more than 170 countries. 12 of its brands annually earn more than $1 billion worldwide: Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident, Tang...
) to invest in the company and take a non-controlling majority interest in the firm.
1930s and 1940s
By 1937, the two largest processed egg companies in the United States were Standard BrandsStandard Brands
Standard Brands was formed in 1929 by J.P. Morgan with the merger of:*Fleischmann Company*Royal Baking Powder Company*E. W. Gillett*Widlar Food Products Company*Chase & Sanborn Coffee Company...
(which became part of Nabisco
Nabisco
Nabisco is an American brand of cookies and snacks. Headquartered in East Hanover, New Jersey, the company is a subsidiary of Illinois-based Kraft Foods. Nabisco's plant in Chicago, a production facility at 7300 S...
and eventually Kraft Foods) and the Ovson Egg Company. Ovson Egg had seven plants, located in Chicago, Illinois; St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
; Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
; Davenport, Iowa
Davenport, Iowa
Davenport is a city located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Davenport is the county seat of and largest city in Scott County. Davenport was founded on May 14, 1836 by Antoine LeClaire and was named for his friend, George Davenport, a colonel during the Black Hawk...
; Moberly, Missouri
Moberly, Missouri
Moberly is a city in Randolph County, Missouri, United States. According to the 2008 census bureau estimate, the population was 14,227. The city was incorporated 1868. The Moberly Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of Randolph County....
; Great Bend, Kansas
Great Bend, Kansas
Great Bend, named for its location at the historic big bend of the Arkansas River, is the most populous city in and the county seat of Barton County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 15,995.-History:...
; and Parsons, Kansas
Parsons, Kansas
Parsons is a city in the northern part of Labette County, located in Southeast Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 10,500...
. The Shanghai plant was the largest egg processing facility in Asia.
As the demand for eggs products soared during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Ovson Egg's profits soared. Ovson Egg was one of the few American firms which manufactured dried and powdered eggs, and it became a significant supplier of egg products to the U.S. military.
In 1948, Leo and Morris Ovson opened an Ovson Egg plant in Neosho, Missouri
Neosho, Missouri
Neosho is the most populous city in and the county seat of Newton County, Missouri, United States. Neosho is an integral part of the Joplin, Missouri Metropolitan Statistical Area....
. The plant was built by R. A. Haas, owner of Haas Cold Storage. Haas leased space to Ovson Egg, and Haas Cold Storage handled the processed eggs.
Sale and legal troubles
In 1952, Kraft Foods purchased National Dairy Products. Ovson Egg became part of Kraft, although the Ovson Egg offices remained in Chicago.Shortly after the Kraft purchase, Morris and Leo Ovson were indicted on June 14, 1955, for perjury
Perjury
Perjury, also known as forswearing, is the willful act of swearing a false oath or affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to a judicial proceeding. That is, the witness falsely promises to tell the truth about matters which affect the outcome of the...
in a labor
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
racketeering investigation. Both men lied to a federal grand jury about giving money to Joseph Glimco
Joseph Glimco
Joseph Paul Glimco was an Italian American labor leader and well-known organized crime figure based in Chicago, Illinois. He was considered "Chicago's top labor racketeer" in the 1950s. One high-ranking Chicago Teamsters leader noted in 1954, "He is the mob...
, president of Local 777 of the Taxicab Drivers Union, and to Max Podolsky, a union organizer
Union organizer
A union organizer is a specific type of trade union member or an appointed union official. A majority of unions appoint rather than elect their organizers....
for the Egg Inspectors Union. Joseph and Max were involved in the buying, selling, inspection and moving of eggs at the Fulton Street Egg Market in Chicago, one of the nation's largest egg trading boards. William Holloway, an accountant for Ovson Egg, was also indicted. Morris Ovson agreed to plead guilty to one charge in exchange for the district attorney dropping two additional charges against him and the lone charge against Leo Ovson. Due to his age, poor health, and retirement from the frozen egg business, Morris Ovson was not sentenced to prison but only to one year of probation.
Morris Ovson died in 1961 at the age of 77.
Current status
As of 2007, Ovson Egg was still a subsidiary of Kraft Foods. It maintains offices in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
and Shanghai. Ovson Egg provides products almost exclusively for use by other Kraft subsidiaries.