Hellman's mayonnaise – ever heard of it?
If not, you might just live west of the Rocky Mountains. But you've probably still eaten it,
whether you know it or not. Here's everything else you need to know about Hellman's mayonnaise.
Hellmann's Delicatessen originally sold two versions of mayo,
so Richard Hellmann used a blue ribbon to distinguish his favorite,
a blend of egg yolks, vegetable oil, vinegar, salt, sugar, and other seasonings. Customers
also preferred this recipe, requesting the "ribbon version" so often that Hellman began
selling jarred mayonnaise with the signature ribbon-adorned label that fans know today.
"Why just eat, when you can eat the best?"
By 1917, Hellmann had trademarked the name "Blue Ribbon Mayonnaise." It sold so well that he closed
the deli, opened a mayonnaise factory across the country in San Francisco, and marketed
his product. It ultimately became the leading mayonnaise in the United States. Why the blue
ribbon? Hellmann has said that the extra touch just completes the look of "a proper package."
If you're watching this from somewhere west of the Rocky Mountains, you may be scratching
your head. Maybe you recognize the blue-ribbon jar, but not the Hellmann's name. That's because
Hellmann's is sold under the brand name "Best Foods" in much of the western United States.
The two products share the same recipe, have similar packaging,
and are even made in the same factory, but they have different names. Why is that?
As Hellmann's swept the East Coast in popularity in the early 1930s,
California-based mayonnaise brand Best Foods became the spread of choice in the West.
Postum Cereal Company, now known as Post, took notice, purchasing both Hellmann's and Best Foods.
Not wanting to sacrifice either well-known name, the company decided to sell the
mayonnaise as Best Foods to the west of the Rocky Mountains and as Hellmann's in the east.
Parent company Unilever insists that the recipes are identical, but some fans say there's a
difference. A HuffPost survey showed that a majority of tasters preferred Hellmann's over
Best Foods, with many saying it tasted sweeter and less tangy than its West Coast counterpart.
If you've scanned the labels in the condiment aisle at your local grocery store,
you might wonder why Hellmann's and Best Mayo label's products are labeled as
"real mayonnaise." Why is mayo trying so hard to convince you that it's real?
Are there that many mayo imposters out there?
As McGill University's Office for Science and Society explains,
the FDA requires products to have a specific list of ingredients to be classified as mayonnaise.
Foods classified as mayonnaise need to have egg yolks and vegetable oil, the school explains.
But products that are "mayo" and not "mayonnaise" don't need to meet those criteria. Miracle Whip,
for example, differs from mayonnaise in the percentage of vegetable oil it contains,
as well as its additional ingredients like corn syrup, which aren't present
in traditional mayonnaise. And Just Mayo, as McGill notes, doesn't contain any eggs at all.
If you caught Hellmann's 2021 Super Bowl commercial with Amy Schumer, you know that the
mayonnaise brand is on a mission to reduce food waste. Schumer said to Parade in February 2021:
"They're doing so much work helping people with food insecurity.
They've just educated me about how much food is wasted."
As the brand's resident "Fairy Godmayo," Schumer shares tips on the Hellmann's website about how to
waste less food, from freezing leftover pasta sauce to learning how to cook…or
just marrying a chef, like she did.
"Now here's the Hellmann's magic. Creamy, dreamy. Boop!"
Hellmann's also claims to be working toward a more environmentally friendly production process,
using 100% cage-free eggs in its mayonnaise and partnering with agricultural organizations to
obtain sustainably sourced oils. The brand has also begun packaging some of its products with
recycled plastic, and in 2020 it made all of its materials using recycled plastic.
Included in Hellmann's early marketing efforts was a 1937 booklet called "Cakes and Cookies
With Personality." Among the recipes was the iconic chocolate mayonnaise cake, developed by
Mrs. Paul Price and now "an American classic." It's featured on Hellmann's website to this day.
It's unknown if Price invented the chocolate mayonnaise cake. Many websites refer to the
dessert as World War II chocolate cake, or Depression-era chocolate cake, because its
ingredients reflected the resourcefulness of home cooks during times of scarcity. While eggs,
butter, and other pricey ingredients were scarce, there was always mayo in the pantry. Because of
that, those living through the Depression could still make a mean chocolate cake. If you're
skeptical, remember that the main ingredients in mayonnaise are eggs and oil, which are usually
included in cake recipes. Plus, vinegar is said to enhance the flavor of the chocolate.
For decades, chefs, professional tasters,
and everyday eaters have considered Hellmann's to taste just plain perfect
Joanne Seltsam, a professional taster for a company that studies
the relationship between the sense and purchasing decisions, had this to say:
"It's what we would call a beautifully made product. All the flavors blend together.
Hellmann's is just so interwoven that tasters have a very difficult time saying
anything other than, 'It tastes like mayonnaise.'"
Hellmann's had 50% of the U.S. market share in mayonnaise in 2017, but the industry has become
increasingly competitive as niche brands, grocers' in-house labels, and specialty products have
started to turn customers' heads. And then there's the Japanese Kewpie Mayonnaise, the umami-rich,
all-yolk mayonnaise that has become incredibly popular among food professionals.
But as long as America's number-one mayonnaise brand continues to develop
organic and vegan options and promote its sustainability practices,
DMS Insights suspects that millennials and Gen Z may continue to "Bring out the Best."
Hellmann's is known for offering strange suggestions for using its mayonnaise in recipes.
For instance, one vintage advertisement touted ways to combine peanut butter and Hellmann's
Mayonnaise on bread. It had suggestions like topping both condiments with apples and marmalade.
Another blast from the past ad suggested that people top their cranberry souffle salads
with a big spoonful of Hellmann's Mayonnaise.
If those aren't quite unappealing enough for you, perhaps Hellmann's latest idea will top them all.
In October 2021, Hellmann's posted on Twitter:
"Mayo in your coffee. That's it, that's the tweet."
"I-I'm sorry, could you say that again?"
Twitter users quickly fired back with responses like,
"I love you intensely, Hellmann's, but this tweet is pure violence"
and
"You must brew some really bad coffee to think that's a good idea."
The post even upset singer Dionne Warwick so much that she seemingly blocked Hellmann's
account entirely, stating that she absolutely can't get behind the idea of mayo in coffee.
If you've been to a fair, food truck, or fast-food restaurant, you've probably used single-serve
packets of Hellmann's Mayonnaise with your subs, fries, or burgers. Unilever Food Solutions boasts
that these convenient packages make it easy for customers to add the perfect amount of
mayo to whatever they're eating. And their easy-open packets make them a breeze to use.
Some restaurants choose to add Hellmann's straight to their
product offerings instead of handing over the reins to their customers.
One such place is Erbert & Gerbert's, a sandwich shop with locations in 12 states, including its
home state of Wisconsin. In early 2022, the chain added two cheesesteak sandwiches to its menu,
the Meatzilla Cheesesteak Sandwich and the Deluxe Cheesesteak Sandwich.
Both included Hellmann's mayonnaise as their default condiments.
The sandwich shop joins the ranks of other famous brands using Hellmann's as their preferred mayo.
Jimmy Johns, for instance, uses it as a primary ingredient in some of its menu items.
Is your Hellmann's Mayo tucked away in a door shelf in your refrigerator? If so, you're not
alone. Many people think that this condiment always needs to be stored in the refrigerator once
it's opened. But sources, even Hellmann's parent brand, Unilever, says that's not always true.
According to Unilever Food Solutions, Hellmann's squeeze-bottle mayo is a "no refrigeration needed"
formula, making it ideal for restaurants to add to their tables for customers to use at will.
"And here's the extra mayonnaise you ordered."
"Yum Yum."
"Enjoy."
"This is the best stuff."
Some mayonnaise packages that can free themselves from the fridge have special formulas that make
it possible without spoiling quickly. Generally speaking though, mayonnaise isn't more likely
to spoil than any other food or condiment. According to the monthly food tracking service,
NPD Group SupplyTrack, the acidity level of mayo tends to inhibit the growth of bacteria.
Still, some people and restaurants choose to put their Hellmann's back in the refrigerator when
they aren't using it, to hang on to it a little longer, especially if they're modest mayo users.
The best way to know if your specific Hellmann's needs to chill is to check its label. Usually,
you'll find this information right by the nutrition facts.
Who knew that a mayonnaise bottle could become such a hit in the food world?
Such is the case with Hellmann's Mayonnaise Squeeze Bottle, which Hellmann's introduced in
2015. The packaging was a new-and-improved version of its previous squeeze bottle.
Hellmann's discovered that the old style was responsible for wasting about 1,000 pounds of mayo
that could not escape the bottles. The newer version included an innovative design that
allowed as much mayo to get squeezed out as possible and a cap that prevented gunk buildup.
Later that year, the new squeeze bottle won the 2015
Package of the Year award from The Association for Dressings and Sauces.
That made it the 16th winner of the honor and the fourth award winner for Unilever,
Hellmann's parent brand. Unilever research and development director Tom Wajda thanked
its partnership with Enercon Industries for the successful design of the new bottles.
There's a newish product in the condiment aisle that you may not have noticed before:
vegan-friendly mayo. Hellmann's released its first version of plant-based mayonnaise in 2016,
originally known as Hellmann's Carefully Crafted Dressing & Sandwich Spread.
The condiment was egg-free, cholesterol-free, and contained no artificial dyes or flavors.
Hellmann's Marketing Director Russel Lilly noted that consumers had asked
for vegan-friendly options for some time. And Hellmann's vegan
mayo provided that without compromising the brand quality they've come to expect.
Later, the mayo product became Hellmann's Vegan Dressing & Spread,
containing all plant-based ingredients and leaving out eggs and gluten. In January 2021,
Hellmann's released even more vegan goodies in the form of mayo-flavored spreads. Three new
variations hit the shelves: Vegan Mayo Baconnaise, Vegan Mayo Chipotle, and Vegan Mayo Garlic.
Currently, they appear to only be offered in the United Kingdom. Hellmann's U.K. & Ireland Senior
Marketing Manager Rachel Chambers explains that the U.K.'s bacon-obsessed residents
seem like a natural audience to try the products first.
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