Naamloze Vennootschap Margarine Unie (English: Margarine Union Limited) was a Dutch company formed in 1927 in Oss by the merger of four

margarine Margarine (, also , ) is a spread used for flavoring, baking, and cooking. It is most often used as a substitute for butter. Although originally made from animal fats, most margarine consumed today is made from vegetable oil. The spread was orig ...

companies, Antoon Jurgens United, Van den Bergh's, Centra, and Schicht's. Margarine Unie was the dominant producer of margarine in the UK.

History

The company origins were in Antoon Jurgens United, a company which was founded in 1867 by

Antoon Jurgens Antoon Jurgens (1805-1880) was a Dutch merchant and industrialist. He founded a butter company that grew to be one of the largest butter and margarine companies in Europe. His company was instrumental in the formation of Margarine Unie which, in ...

. The company introduced its manufactured margarine after acquiring the patents and rights to

Hippolyte Mège-Mouriès Hippolyte Mège-Mouriès (; 24 October 1817 – 31 May 1880) was a French chemist and inventor who is famous for his invention of margarine. Early life Hippolyte Mège was born on 24 October 1817 in Draguignan to Jean Joseph-Emmanuel Mège and ...

' invention in 1871. In 1908, production at Antoon Jurgens United was 50,000 tons. In 1908 Antoon Jurgens United formed a profit-sharing arrangement with Van den Bergh's which had been formed by

Samuel van den Bergh Samuel van den Bergh (6 April 1864, in Oss – 4 February 1941, in Nice) was one of the main European Jewish margarine and soap manufacturers in the early 20th century. In 1888, the year his father, Simon van den Bergh, opened his first German ...

and which, like Antoon Jurgens United, was based in the town of Oss,

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Schicht's was founded by Georg Schicht whose son

Johann Schicht Johann Schicht (8 March 1855 in Ringelshain (Rynoltice) – 3 June 1907 in Aussig (Ústí nad Labem)) was a German Bohemian entrepreneur, owner of a large soap-making plant. Biography Johann's father, farmer and butcher Georg Schicht, started ...

was a German Bohemian entrepreneur and owner of a large soap-making plant. Naamloze Vennootschap Margarine Unie (English: Margarine Union Limited) was formed in 1927 in

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

by the merger of four

companies, Antoon Jurgens United, Van den Bergh's, Centra, and Schicht's. The merged entity acquired the interests of Van den Bergh's in England (Margarine Union Limited) and those of Van den Bergh's and Antoon Jurgens United in the Netherlands (N.V. Margarine Unie). The companies were set up in an agreement under which the shareholders benefited as if they had shares in a single company. Margarine Unie operated until 1930 when it merged with the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

company

Lever Brothers Lever Brothers was a British manufacturing company founded in 1885 by two brothers: William Hesketh Lever, 1st Viscount Leverhulme (1851–1925), and James Darcy Lever (1854–1916). They invested in and successfully promoted a new soap-making p ...

, to form the multinational

Unilever Unilever plc is a British multinational consumer goods company with headquarters in London, England. Unilever products include food, condiments, bottled water, baby food, soft drink, ice cream, instant coffee, cleaning agents, energy drink, t ...

. In 2017 Unilever spun its margarine business off into Upfield (Upfield Europe BV), effectively returning the business to its old base in Rotterdam.

References

External links

Unilever History
{{Unilever Unilever companies Dutch companies established in 1927 Manufacturing companies based in Rotterdam Defunct companies of the Netherlands Food and drink companies established in 1927 Margarine