Home Today Is Fig Newtons Were One Of The First Commercially Baked Products In America.

Fig Newtons Were One Of The First Commercially Baked Products In America.

National Fig Newton Day on January 16th annually recognizes a tasty pastry enjoyed across the country.

  • 19th century – many physicians believed most illnesses were related to digestion problems. As a remedy, they recommended a daily intake of biscuits and fruit. Fig rolls served as an ideal solution to their advice, which remained a locally produced and handmade product.
  • 1889 – William Moore of New York bought out eight bakeries to start the New York Biscuit Company (including Kennedy Biscuit). In 1890, Chicago-based Adolphus Green began the American Biscuit Company, by merging 40 midwestern bakeries.
  • 1891 –  they produced the first Fig Newtons baked at the F.A. Kennedy Steam Bakery. The company named the pastries after the town of Newton, Massachusetts.
  • 1891 – Philadelphia baker and fig-lover, Charles Roser, invented and patented the machine, which inserted fig paste into a thick pastry dough.
  • 1898 – Moore and Green merged in 1898, making the National Biscuit Company, or N.B.C. Among the purchases were the machines of Mitchell and Roser’s cookie recipe.
  • 1901 – Mitchell’s machine for sugar wafers was also purchased; N.B.C. started mass-producing sugar wafers in 1901. Both Mitchell and Roser walked away wealthy.
  • 1991 – Fig Newton Day festivities were enjoyed by thousands who celebrated in the Boston suburb with free cookies and more entertainment on the 100th anniversary of the cookie’s creation.
  • 1997 – Fig Newtons are NOT the Massachusetts state cookie having been beaten by another famous cookie in 1997 – the Chocolate Chip Cookie.
  • 2012 – Nabisco dropped the word “Fig” from the product’s name.
  • The Cambridgeport, MA-based Kennedy Biscuit Company then purchased Roser’s recipe. They began mass production after purchasing the recipe.
  • They had named many of their other cookies for nearby towns and almost called it the “Fig Shrewsbury” before Newton won.
  • Fig Newtons was one of the first commercially baked products in America.
  • Because of the lowly Fig Newton, the legendary Nabisco baking company had its roots.
  • Fig Newtons are the 3rd most popular cookie in the U.S., and over 1 billion are consumed each year.
  • Fig Newtons were for sale for over 100 years before they were known as cookies.
  • Currently, Nabisco manufactures strawberry, apple cinnamon, raspberry, cherry, and blueberry Newton flavors, none selling a fraction of the original fig variety because of brand awareness and their comparative lack of sex appeal.
  • Some flavors included Fig Newtons Bars Raspberry & Yogurt, Strawberry Kiwi Fruit, Strawberry Shortcake Cookies, and more. These have all been discontinued.

Sources:

National Day Calendar

Mobile-Cuisine

Faith Based Events

Thought Co

National Today 

The Hard Times

The Daily Meal


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