The Gerber
story, by most accounts, began in 1928 on the production lines of the Fremont
Canning Company. But according to Daniel Gerber, it all started in his kitchen
the summer of 1927. Following the advice of a pediatrician, Dorothy Gerber had
been hand-straining solid food for her seven-month-old daughter Sally. After
many evenings of repeating this chore, Mrs. Gerber suggested that her husband
try it. After watching him make several attempts, she pointed out that the work
could be easily done at the Fremont Canning Company, where the Gerber family
produced a line of canned fruits and vegetables. Daniel Gerber, covered in
strained peas, thought his wife had a good point.
Experiments with
strained baby foods began shortly thereafter, and Sally Gerber became the
company's first baby food analyst. Soon workers in the plant requested samples
for their babies. By late 1928, strained peas, prunes, carrots and spinach, not
to mention beef vegetable soup, were ready for the national market.
At
that time, national distribution was nearly unheard of, meaning that the foods
would only be available in a few stores in every area of the country. To
compensate, the Gerbers launched an advertising campaign featuring a coupon and
the now-famous Gerber Baby. The ads appeared in publications from The Journal
of the American Medical Association to Good Housekeeping. Grocers who had been
skeptical were now placing orders by the dozen. Within six months, Gerber Baby
Foods were on grocery store shelves across the nation.
Gerber has
continued to grow throughout the years. Nearly 190 food products are now labeled
in 16 languages and distributed to 80 countries. Always dedicated to the health
of its young consumers, Gerber has maintained one of the world's largest private
research facilities dedicated exclusively to infant nutrition. And the company's
Consumer Relations Department, begun in 1938 with Mrs. Gerber personally
answering every letter, now responds to questions from nearly 800,000 consumers
a year.
The areas largest festival is, The Annual baby Food Fest.