Ovaltine facts for kids
Ovaltine jar and cup, both in the distinctive orange colour
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| Type | Choco milk drink |
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| Manufacturer | Associated British Foods or licensees (Nestlé in the United States) |
| Country of origin | Switzerland |
| Introduced | 1904 |
| Variants | Chocolate Malt, Malt, Rich Chocolate |
| Related products |
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Ovaltine (also known by its original name Ovomaltine) is a popular drink mix. It is often added to milk to make a tasty beverage. Ovaltine is made with malt extract, sugar, and a part of milk called whey. Some types of Ovaltine also have cocoa, which gives them a chocolate flavor.
Ovaltine is a registered trademark of Associated British Foods. It is made by a company called Wander AG. In the United States, Nestlé makes Ovaltine.
Contents
How Ovaltine Started
Ovaltine was first created in 1904. A chemist named Albert Wander developed it in Bern, Switzerland. In Switzerland, it is still called by its original name, Ovomaltine. This name comes from the Latin word ovum, meaning "egg," and "malt." Eggs and malt were the main ingredients when it was first made.
In 1927, the factory moved to a village called Neuenegg. Ovaltine is still made there today.
Ovaltine Spreads Around the World
Ovomaltine was first sent to Britain in 1909. There, it was called Ovaltine. A factory was built in Kings Langley to make it for Britain and the United States. By 1915, Ovaltine was also being made in Villa Park, Illinois, for the US market.
Later, Ovaltine was made in Peterborough, Ontario, for Canada. In 1943, a large factory opened in Devonport, Tasmania. This helped meet the demand for Ovaltine in Australasian and Southeast Asian countries.
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When it first started, Ovaltine was advertised as having only "malt, milk, eggs, flavoured with cocoa." However, the recipe has changed over the years. Today, different versions are sold in various parts of the world. For example, in India and the UK, Ovaltine no longer contains eggs.
Different Kinds of Ovaltine
The most common type of Ovaltine is a chocolate malt powder. You mix this powder with hot or cold milk to make a drink. There is also a "Malt" Ovaltine, which does not have cocoa. A "Rich Chocolate" Ovaltine is also available in some places, and it does not have malt.
Ovaltine has also been sold in other forms. These include chocolate bars, chocolate Easter eggs, and even breakfast cereals.
For a while, Ovaltine also made other drink mixes like PDQ Chocolate Flavor Beads. These were popular from the 1960s to the 1980s but are not sold anymore.
The Ovaltine factory in Villa Park, Illinois, was open from 1917 until 1988. Today, the old factory building has been turned into apartments. It is now known as Ovaltine Court.
Who Owns Ovaltine?
The ownership of Ovaltine has changed a few times. In 1992, a company called Himmel Group got the rights to make and sell Ovaltine in the US. Then, in 2002, Himmel sold these rights to Novartis. By 2007, Nestlé bought Novartis's medical nutrition part. This means Nestlé now has the rights to Ovaltine in the United States.
Ovaltine Around the World
Ovaltine was very popular in Britain. It was made at a factory in Kings Langley. This factory had a unique art deco style and was a well-known local building. Production stopped there in 2002. The factory is now luxury apartments.
Near the factory, there was once a health farm run by the Ovaltine company. It was a model farm and a health resort for children who needed help. This farm operated until the 1960s.
In October 2002, Associated British Foods bought the food and drinks part of Novartis, which made Ovaltine. Today, ABF makes Ovaltine in Switzerland, China, Thailand, and Australia. In Canada, Grace Foods makes Ovaltine. In the United States, Nestlé makes it.
In Hong Kong, Ovaltine is a common drink in cafes. It is served hot or cold with ice. In Brazil, people often mix it with vanilla ice cream. In Asia, there is even a chocolate ice cream flavored with Ovaltine powder.
The Ovomaltine brand is very famous in Switzerland. It is often linked to skiing and snowboarding. In Hong Kong, McCafé offers special "Ovaltine Crunchy Latte" drinks and desserts.
In Malaysia, Ovaltine is not as popular as Milo. However, it is still sold in cartons for cold serving in many shops. In Japan, Ovaltine was sold for a short time in the late 1970s but was not very successful. In Australia, you can find "Ovalteenies". These are small, round tablets of compressed Ovaltine that people eat like candy.
In Brazil, a fast-food chain called Bob's has offered milkshakes and sundaes made with Ovaltine since 1959. It is called "Ovomaltine" there and became a very famous product for Bob's. In 2016, McDonald's got the special right to sell "Ovomaltine"-branded milkshakes in Brazil.
Brazil has the second-largest Ovaltine factory. It is in São Paulo. Brazil is also the second-largest consumer of Ovaltine, after Thailand. The Ovaltine made in Brazil is a bit different. It is crispier than other versions because of a special way it is made.
In 2011, Ovaltine was temporarily not allowed to be sold in Denmark. This was due to a law about food products with added vitamins.
See also
In Spanish: Ovomaltine para niños
- Akta-Vite
- Carnation (brand)
- Culinary Heritage of Switzerland
- Malted milk
- Horlicks
- List of chocolate beverages
- List of hot beverages
- Nesquik, another drink mix produced by Nestlé
- Nestlé Milo
- Ovaltineys
- Ovalteenies
- Postum
- Swiss chocolate
