Fair Food
As it is with modern fairs, food played a major role in the World's Fair. Many new foods were first seen at the Chicago World's Fair. A lot of these had been small and more locally known foods and beverages, but with the massive turnout at the fair and the awards handed out, these foods became household products and brands people would know for years to come.
Pabst Blue Ribbon
Originally known as Best Select or Pabst Select, this beer was first introduced in the 1840s and sold by Best Brewing company when the Pabst and Best families were joined by marriage. Pabst Select was featured at the fair and won the Best Beer Award and was given a blue ribbon. The bottles were then sold with blue ribbons tied around the neck of the bottle and were widely known as the 'blue ribbon beer' which led to the company changing the name to Pabst Blue Ribbon.
Cracker Jack
Cracker Jack was another brand that was introduced before the fair but because of the turnout at the fair it became a widely known brand. A new recipe was introduced at the Fair, which included popcorn, peanuts, and molasses. While the molasses in this original recipe was too sticky, the flavor was one that people loved, so they changed the recipe to keep the flavor but remove the stickiness.
Aunt Jemima
Another food that was introduced at the Fair that is still known today was the Aunt Jemima pancake mix. Not only was this a featured food but the brand was displayed in the First Electric Kitchen, which brought more interest in the brand. This brand is still known today, but for negative reasons. Even when it was showcased at the fair, the brand's 'mascot' was a racist depiction of a Black woman. The woman it was made after was Nancy Green, a previously enslaved woman. Green became the face of the brand and traveled around to different fairs playing a caricature of herself and other Black domestic workers. Aunt Jamima was a famous example of the 'mammy' stereotype and due to the racist history, the brand was discontinued in 2021, but the recipe is still sold by PepsiCo, but renamed 'Pearl Milling Company' after the company that originally sold the pancake mix.