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Edmonds (brand)

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

OwnerGoodman Fielder
CountryNew Zealand
Introduced1879
Websiteedmondscooking.co.nz

Edmonds is a New Zealand brand of baking products and creator of the Edmonds Cookery Book. It was founded in 1879 as a baking powder manufacturer by grocer Thomas Edmonds after hearing his customers complain about the available baking powder not always rising properly. He created his own formula and told his customers that his baking powder was "sure to rise", which later became a slogan of the brand. Edmonds later became part of Goodman Fielder. The Edmonds Cookery Book was first published in 1908 with the name Sure To Rise Cookery Book. Since then, it has become New Zealand's best-selling book, and has been described as a New Zealand icon. The book uses staples as ingredients.

History

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The Edmonds factory and garden, 1936

Edmonds was started in 1879 by grocer Thomas Edmonds after hearing his customers complain about the available baking powder being unreliable.[1][2] Edmonds spent three years creating his own formula,[3][4]: 3  while his wife managed the shop.[4]: 3  He sold 200 tins in his first batch, and told his customers that their baked goods were "sure to rise",[1] which turned into the brand's slogan.[2] He travelled around Canterbury marketing his baking powder to households.[3][4]: 3  If the occupants refused to buy the baking powder, he would give them a tin for free and would take it back if they were unsatisfied. Edmonds recalled in 1922 that no tins were ever returned.[5]

The Edmonds family moved to a house in the early 1890s on the corner of Aldwins and Ferry road in Christchurch. There, Edmonds increased the scale of production by building sheds. This site later turned into the three-storey factory with the "Sure to Rise" sign[4]: 4  in 1892, featuring gardens and later making its way onto the cover of the Edmonds Cookery Book.[1][2]

In 1912, the millionth tin was sold,[6] and by 1929, when the country's population was 1.5 million, Edmonds was selling three million tins a year.[7][8] The leftover tins were recycled to build a few roads in Christchurch. During World War II, the Home Guard encouraged housewives to hoard the tins, so they could be used in jam tin grenade bombs in case the Empire of Japan invaded.[8]

After the head office and manufacturing moved to Auckland in the 1980s and the Ferry Road factory was abandoned,[8] it was controversially demolished in 1990, and the Christchurch City Council bought part of the gardens next year. An oval garden and a rose garden was later added.[1][2] Brierley Investments bought Edmonds in 1984,[8] and as of 2023 Edmonds is owned by Goodman Fielder.[1][8]

Edmonds Street, next to the location of the old factory, had incorrectly been spelt "Edmond St" from 1893 until the community board renamed it to "Edmonds St" in 2018. It was originally named "Edmonds St" and it is not known why the 's' disappeared.[9]

Edmonds products include baking powder, cake mixes, flours,[10] yeast, baking soda and custard powder.[11] They previously sold jelly crystals, which had the slogan "sure to set",[8] and a pastry range that was discontinued in 2023.[12]

Edmonds Cookery Book

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Main article: Edmonds Cookery Book
The third edition of the cookery book, published in 1914

The Edmonds Cookery Book is a recipe book made by Edmonds, that features simple recipes using staples and affordable ingredients.[13] The 2012 edition has over 500 recipes.[1]

With over three million copies sold by 2015, it is the best-selling New Zealand published book as of 2019,[1][13][14][15] and has been described by Ron Palenski as "much a part of New Zealand kitchens as a stove and knife".[1] It has also been called a New Zealand icon, Kiwiana,[15] and has appeared on a 2008 stamp series featuring national icons for each letter of the alphabet.[1]

Before the cookery book was created, Edmonds put recipes in the lids of the baking powder tins.[8] The book was first published in 1908, originally named the Sure To Rise Cookery Book with 50 pages.[1] In 1930 the first edition with photos was released,[6] and since 1955, the 'sure to rise' factory has been on the cover.[13] The 1971 book was dedicated to gas cooking,[16] and a microwave baking section was added in 1988.[6]

Originally, housewives could write a request to Edmonds to get a free copy.[16] Couples in the 1940s who announced that they had become engaged in the newspaper would receive a free cookbook.[6] Since 1955 it has been a paid product.[6][13]

Factory Gardens

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Edmonds Factory Gardens, 2016

The gardens were originally designed in 1923 with an Edwardian style by a factory worker,[17] as part of the garden city movement.[4]: 7  A garden was designed in front of the factory in 1935 by Edgar Taylor, with a neoclassical style. A bowling green and kindergarten was later added.[17] Since about 1940 there has been a lily pond and a bed of French marigolds in the form of sunrays in the Edmonds logo. A pond and creek was added from 1977 to 1982. The gardens in front of the factory were removed in the demolition, but the western gardens were preserved after being bought by the city council.[4]: 7  There is a memorial rose garden to the daughter of Edmonds, Irene Ballantyne. It is often used as a wedding venue.[17] The gardens are maintained by the local group Friends of the Gardens.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Edmonds cookery book". New Zealand History. Archived from the original on 13 August 2024. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Sure to Rise: The story of Edmonds". RNZ. 18 May 2023. Archived from the original on 21 May 2023. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Brand History". Edmonds. Archived from the original on 15 April 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Hurrell, Mei (1993). The legacy of Thomas Edmonds (PDF). Christchurch, N.Z.: Christchurch City Council, Environmental Policy & Planning Unit. ISBN 0-9597973-1-9. OCLC 39746008. Archived (PDF) from the original on 30 October 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
  5. ^ "A Great New Zealand Business". The Evening Post. Vol. CIII, no. 40. 17 February 1922. p. 4. Archived from the original on 30 October 2023. Retrieved 31 March 2021 – via Papers Past.
  6. ^ a b c d e Josie, Steenhart (29 September 2016). "Iconic Edmonds cookbook given mouthwatering makeover". Your Weekend. Archived from the original on 13 August 2024. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
  7. ^ Black, Sandi (14 September 2023). "Museum Notebook: Edmonds - 'Sure to Rise'". Whanganui Chronicle. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Matthews, Philip (20 May 2023). "Edmonds: The rise and fall of a family factory". The Post. Archived from the original on 30 November 2024. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
  9. ^ Hayward, Michael (30 January 2018). "Christchurch's Edmonds St name to be finally fixed after typo lasts 124 years". The Press. Archived from the original on 13 August 2024. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  10. ^ "Edmonds baking pastry discontinued: 'No longer commercially viable'". The New Zealand Herald. 8 September 2023. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  11. ^ "Baking Ingredients". Edmonds. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  12. ^ "'No longer commercially viable' - Edmonds pastry discontinued". RNZ. 8 September 2023. Archived from the original on 13 August 2024. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  13. ^ a b c d Houlahan, Mike (2 January 2019). "Edmonds' recipe for success". Otago Daily Times. Archived from the original on 13 August 2024. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  14. ^ "Cookbooks, magazines and television shows". Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. 5 September 2013. Retrieved 3 December 2024.
  15. ^ a b "Kiwiana". newzealand.com. Tourism New Zealand. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  16. ^ a b Forrester, Georgia (2 August 2019). "The Edmonds Cookery Book: How NZ's much-loved book has drastically evolved". Stuff. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  17. ^ a b c "Edmonds factory gardens still charms". Stuff. 16 November 2014. Archived from the original on 13 August 2024. Retrieved 13 August 2024.

Further reading

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  • Alsop, Peter; Parsonson, Kate Parsonson; Wolfe, Wolfe (1 May 2023). Sure to Rise: The Edmonds Story.
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