Martha White
Encyclopedia
Martha White is a U.S.
brand of flour
, cornmeal
, cornbread
mixes, cake mixes, muffin mixes and similar products.
The Martha White brand was established as the premium brand of Nashville
, Tennessee
-based Royal Flour Mills in 1899. At that time, Nashville businessman Richard Lindsey introduced a fine flour that he named for his daughter, Martha White Lindsey.
The Martha White brand is probably most associated with its long-term sponsorship of the country music
radio
program, the Grand Ole Opry
. The relationship began in 1948 and has existed continuously since then, making it one of the longest continually running radio show sponsorships known.
A jingle for the flour, written by Nashville
songwriter Pat Twitty in 1953, was first performed from the stage of the Grand Ole Opry
by bluegrass music
artists Flatt and Scruggs. It is still in use today, having become a bluegrass standard and a signature number of Rhonda Vincent
& the Rage.
Packaging for Martha White ingredients (flour, cornmeal) feature the likeness of three-year-old Martha White. The commercials for the products stress the fact that they are "self-rising" due to the presence of the trademark
ed leavening "Hot-Rize" or "Hot-Rize Plus". Martha White has expanded its product offering beyond ingredients to include baking mixes.
Martha White merged with Beatrice Foods
in 1975. In 1986, Beatrice, newly acquired by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, spun off its specialty foods and non-food brands as E-II Holdings. E-II attempted to take over American Brands
in 1988, but instead American Brands purchased E-II. Martha White was sold off in 1989.
Martha White was purchased by the Pillsbury Company in 1994; the baking products of Pillsbury were spun off in 2001 under the name International Multifoods. The J.M. Smucker Co.
acquired International Multifoods in 2005.
A Bluegrass band from Boulder Colorado named their band "Hot Rize" after Martha White's support of Bluegrass music
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
brand of flour
Flour
Flour is a powder which is made by grinding cereal grains, other seeds or roots . It is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many cultures, making the availability of adequate supplies of flour a major economic and political issue at various times throughout history...
, cornmeal
Cornmeal
Cornmeal is flour ground from dried maize or American corn. It is a common staple food, and is ground to fine, medium, and coarse consistencies. In the United States, the finely ground cornmeal is also referred to as cornflour. However, the word cornflour denotes cornstarch in recipes from the...
, cornbread
Cornbread
Cornbread is a generic name for any number of quick breads containing cornmeal and leavened by baking powder.-History:Native Americans were using ground corn for food thousands of years before European explorers arrived in the New World...
mixes, cake mixes, muffin mixes and similar products.
The Martha White brand was established as the premium brand of Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
-based Royal Flour Mills in 1899. At that time, Nashville businessman Richard Lindsey introduced a fine flour that he named for his daughter, Martha White Lindsey.
The Martha White brand is probably most associated with its long-term sponsorship of the country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
program, the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
. The relationship began in 1948 and has existed continuously since then, making it one of the longest continually running radio show sponsorships known.
A jingle for the flour, written by Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
songwriter Pat Twitty in 1953, was first performed from the stage of the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
by bluegrass music
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
artists Flatt and Scruggs. It is still in use today, having become a bluegrass standard and a signature number of Rhonda Vincent
Rhonda Vincent
Rhonda Lea Vincent is a bluegrass singer, songwriter, mandolin player, guitarist, and fiddle player.Her musical career started as a child in her family's band, The Sally Mountain Show, and has spanned almost four decades...
& the Rage.
Packaging for Martha White ingredients (flour, cornmeal) feature the likeness of three-year-old Martha White. The commercials for the products stress the fact that they are "self-rising" due to the presence of the trademark
Trademark
A trademark, trade mark, or trade-mark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by an individual, business organization, or other legal entity to identify that the products or services to consumers with which the trademark appears originate from a unique source, and to distinguish its products or...
ed leavening "Hot-Rize" or "Hot-Rize Plus". Martha White has expanded its product offering beyond ingredients to include baking mixes.
Martha White merged with Beatrice Foods
Beatrice Foods
Beatrice Foods Company was a major American food processing company. In 1987, its smaller international food operations were sold to Reginald Lewis, a corporate attorney creating TLC Beatrice International, after which the majority of its domestic brands and assets were acquired by Kohlberg,...
in 1975. In 1986, Beatrice, newly acquired by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, spun off its specialty foods and non-food brands as E-II Holdings. E-II attempted to take over American Brands
Fortune Brands
Fortune Brands was a holding company founded in 1969 as American Brands and later renamed in 1997 and split apart in 2011. The corporate headquarters was in Deerfield, Illinois in the United States. The company historically had a significant diversity of product offerings...
in 1988, but instead American Brands purchased E-II. Martha White was sold off in 1989.
Martha White was purchased by the Pillsbury Company in 1994; the baking products of Pillsbury were spun off in 2001 under the name International Multifoods. The J.M. Smucker Co.
The J.M. Smucker Co.
The J. M. Smucker Company is a manufacturer of fruit spreads, ice cream toppings, beverages, shortening, natural peanut butter and other products in North America. Smucker's headquarters are located in Orrville, Ohio.- History :...
acquired International Multifoods in 2005.
A Bluegrass band from Boulder Colorado named their band "Hot Rize" after Martha White's support of Bluegrass music