Distributed by the Ohio State University Press for Hildebolt Books
Proceeds from the sales of this book benefit OSU scholarships.
Prego Spaghetti Sauce has been a flagship product in Campbell Soup Company’s portfolio for more than thirty years. This book showcases the creativity, science, and determination that were key to Prego’s development. From the tomato breeding to the recipe formulation to the engineering and mechanical feats necessary for production—not to mention the marketing research and advertising efforts needed to position Prego in the marketplace—It's In There!® is a memoir-based product history of an iconic brand found today in kitchens around the world.
William Morton Hildebolt is CEO and Owner of Nature’s Select Premium Turf Services, Inc. For nearly fifteen years, Hildebolt worked for Campbell Soup Company, where he was involved in the development and improvement of numerous domestic and international product lines. Hildebolt holds over twenty patents in food processing and food products. Hildebolt holds a BS, MS, and PhD in Food Technology from The Ohio State University.
Bonnie Bajorek Daneker is Founder and Principal of WasteLine Sustainability Communications, launching fall of 2017. WasteLine will offer content and program management services in support of sustainability efforts. Formerly, she was CEO of Write Advisors, providing composition, production, and distribution services to clients looking to fulfill their dreams of publishing. She earned her MBA from Emory University Goizueta Business School and her BA in Journalism from The Ohio State University.
Prologue
Ch 1 Ohio Farm Boy Beginnings
Welcome to America
Taming Preble County
Enter the Texas Rangers
Farmer to Food Technologist
Prego Professional Profile—Dr. Wilbur A. Gould
The Midas Touch of a Gould Recommendation
Ch 2 New Jersey and New Job
The Hell’s Angels Welcome
Hey, Ohio, You’re Going the Wrong Way!
The Neophyte’s Initiation
Inside the Magic Kingdom
Prego Professional Profile—Don Maley
Follow the Yellow Brick Road
The Path of the Cans
Disorientation
Ch 3 Birth of an Institution
A Glimmer in Anderson’s Eye
Arthur Dorrance Takes the Reins
The Campbell Crew
The Doctor is In
Pounding the Pavement
Fedora to Chef’s Hat
Treasures in the Soil
Roaring Campbell’s
World-Famous Marketing
The Great Depression
Prego Professional Profile—Charlie Gaehring
Gift of the Natives
The Legacy of Dr. Dorrance
When the Streets Ran Red
A Short-Lived Retirement
Ch 4 Mission Impossible 50
Instant Pumpkin Pie in the Shark Tank
Lassie to the Rescue
Lassie’s Biscuit Challenge
The Dustup
Bounce
Dough Jam
Master Problem Solvers
Prego Professional Profile—Ralph Miller
Prego Professional Profile—Bev Murphy
An Early Total Recall
The Legacy of Bev Murphy
Ch 5 The Passion of the Tomato
Traveling Tomato
North Americans Get Interested
Early Hothouse Activity
Red Top and the Square
Pioneering at CSC’s Research Lab
Campbell-146
Prego Professional Profile—Dr. M. Allen Stevens
The Square Rounds
Return to Academia
Ch 6 Tomato Task Force and Product Development
Prego Professional Profile—Harold Shaub
Leadership Transition
Formulation of the Task Force
The Super Hot Break (SHB) Process
Top Secret Test at the Stockton Plant
PME and the Heat Sink
The Ketchup Wars
Heinz Lashes Out Again
Know Thy Enemy: Heinz Ketchup
Stack Burn
Breeding, Breeding, and More Breeding
Secret Weapon
The A Team
Our Quest for the “Non-Weeping” Spaghetti Sauce
Ch 7 Plant Works
A State Affair
Under a Magnifying Glass
Prego Professional Profile—Fred Tyler
S.O.B.
Behind the Scenes at the Paste Plant
Camden-Style Engineering
February Tomato Season at the Camden Plant
Strategic Planning
Prego Professional Profile—Bob Subin
Don’t Mess with SD
Ch 8 Formulation
Prego Professional Profile—Chef Werner Schilling
The First Hot Break Test Formulations: Campbell’s Ketchup and Marinara
8 a.m. Product Inspections
Ch 9 Sacramento Paste Plant
Prego Professional Profile—Charlie Long
High Drama in Hot Temperatures
Prego Professional Profile—Steve Stewart
Time is Ticking …
Emergency Retest
T Minus Three and Counting
More Hurdles to Come
Ch 10 Proving Grounds
Skunkworks
Market Research and Re-Search
Slow Start
Leber Katz Partners
Prego Professional Profile—Laurel Cutler
The Genius of Laurel Cutler and the Birth of Prego
Homestyle Positioning
Political Aplomb of Herb Baum
Prego Professional Profile—Herbert Baum
Ch 11 Dixon Plant
Finally, a Breather
Prego Professional Profile—The Grower
Leadership En Route
Prego Professional Profile—Lew Springer
Springer Leadership
Prego Professional Profile—Milt Zimmerman
Next Steps
Ch 12 External Wars
Garrrbage
The Long Ride Home
Back in the Kitchen
The Cost Study: The Odyssey Continues
Prego in the Shark Tank
A Big Garage
Financial Duel
Baum Drops a Bomb
Make It Sweeter!
The Two-City Test Market
Continuing Responsibilities
Prego Professional Profile—Bill Stinson
Ch 13 Napoleon Plant Retrofits
Predictions of the Napoleon Staff
Startup Crew, Part I
Prego Professional Profile—Ross Kelley
Pepto-Bismol
Prego Professional—Lynn Garwood
Startup Crew, Part II
Getting Dirty
Ch 14 The Consumer’s Blessing
National Introduction
Finally, a Sense of Accomplishment
Epilogue
Afterword
In Memoriam
Acknowledgements
About the Authors
Book Club Questions