Origin of Cool Whip

Cool Whip is an artificial product intended to mimic whipped cream, composed mainly of water, hydrogenated vegetable oil, and high fructose corn syrup. The key advantage of Cool Whip is that it is a whipped cream-like product that could be distributed in a frozen state by grocery chains and kept in the consumer’s refrigerator.

Cool Whip was invented sometime prior to 1966, when it was first introduced to the market, by Dr William A. Mitchell, a food chemist in General Food’s Birds Eye division from 1941 to 1976. Birds Eye test-marketed Cool-Whip in April 1966 in Seattle and Buffalo; because it was ‘a city where usage of fresh whipped cream is high’.

Cool Whip was a huge success. By Christmas 1966, 60 percent of the housewife who had sampled Cool Whip had made a repeat purchase.

Within two years of its introduction Cool Whip became the largest and most profitable product in the Birds Eye line of products.

Cool Whip was probably marketed by Bird Eye to compete with Kraft’s Dream Whip Topping Mix, which had been introduced in 1957, nearly a decade earlier than Cool Whip.

Birds Eye later merged with Kraft Foods and Philip Morris, eventually becoming part of Altria Group until the spin-off Kraft Foods from Altria in 2012.

In a product diversification strategy, Cook Whip rolled out a line of frozen frostings in 2012. The flavors were chocolate, vanilla, and cream cheese.
Origin of Cool Whip