For thousands of years, humans cooked with animal fats — butter, lard, tallow. Then, in just a few decades around the early 1900s, America made a dramatic shift. We abandoned lard (rendered pork fat) in favor of a new synthetic product: Crisco.
But this wasn't a natural evolution. It was one of the most successful marketing campaigns in American history — backed by science fiction, anti-immigrant sentiment, and a scandal that shocked the nation.
Chapter 1: The Golden Age of Lard
Before 1911, lard was king in American kitchens. It was cheap, abundant, and produced by every farm with pigs. Lard wasn't just a byproduct — it was a primary reason farmers raised hogs.
What is Lard, Exactly?
Lard is the rendered fat from a pig (Sus scrofa domesticus). Unlike the fat around organs (tallow), lard comes from the internal fat deposits, particularly the "leaf fat" around the kidneys. When properly rendered, it produces a white, creamy fat that's solid at room temperature but melts easily when heated.
Lard had been the backbone of American cooking for centuries:
- Colonial America: Pork was the most efficient livestock — pigs converted scraps to meat and fat. Lard was used for frying, baking, and as a spread.
- 19th Century: The explosion of Southern cuisine relied heavily on lard for frying chicken, making biscuits, and cooking vegetables.
- Economics: Lard was significantly cheaper than butter and available year-round.
Chapter 2: Enter Procter & Gamble
In 1911, everything changed. Procter & Gamble introduced Crisco — the first all-vegetable shortening made from hydrogenated cottonseed oil.
1837
Procter & Gamble Founded
William Procter and James Gamble started making soap and candles in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Late 1800s
Electricity Threatens the Candle Business
As electric lighting spreads, demand for candles plummets. P&G needs new products to survive.
1890s
The Hydrogenation Breakthrough
Chemist Norman Trieur develops a process to harden liquid oils. P&G acquires the American rights and uses it for soap, but realizes it can create a food product.
1911
Crisco is Born
Procter & Gamble introduces Crisco — derived from "Crystallized Cottonseed Oil." It launches with massive marketing.
Chapter 3: The Marketing Machine
What happened next was revolutionary. P&G deployed a marketing strategy that would become a blueprint for the food industry:
1. The "Purity" Campaign
Crisco was positioned as pure and scientific — a product of modern chemistry, not dirty animal rendering. Print ads claimed:
"Crisco is a clean, pure food product — made in a laboratory under the most sanitary conditions possible. Unlike lard, which comes from animals slaughtered in packing houses, Crisco contains no animal fat whatsoever."
2. The Free Cookbook Strategy
P&G distributed over 100 million copies of "The Story of Crisco" — a cookbook with 615 recipes using exclusively Crisco. This wasn't just advertising; it was a total replacement of culinary knowledge.
3. The Jewish Market
Crisco was kosher — it contained neither lard (non-kosher) nor butter (mixing meat and dairy). P&G actively marketed to Jewish households, who became early adopters and helped spread Crisco's reputation.
4. "Doctor's Orders"
P&G commissioned and publicized endorsements from doctors and nutritionists — many of whom had financial ties to P&G. The message was clear: Crisco is healthier than animal fats.
Chapter 4: The Jungle Effect
1906: Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle"
Upton Sinclair's muckraking novel exposed horrific conditions in Chicago meat-packing plants. While focused on labor abuses and unsanitary conditions, the book horrified readers with descriptions of diseased animals and contaminated meat products ending up in food.
Even though much was exaggerated or fictional, the damage was done: American consumers became suspicious of all meat products. Lard — a direct byproduct of the meat industry — became collateral damage.
The timing couldn't have been better for P&G. "The Jungle" created a fear of meat products, and Crisco offered a "clean" alternative. The traditional lard industry, fragmented and underfunded, never mounted a serious defense.
Chapter 5: World War I & The Final Push
By the 1910s, P&G had laid the groundwork. Then World War I provided the final blow:
- Lard shortages: Wartime demand and export restrictions made lard expensive and scarce.
- Conservation efforts: The U.S. Food Administration encouraged households to use vegetable shortenings to "save bacon fat for the troops."
- Crisco filled the gap: With aggressive marketing and available supply, Crisco became the default choice.
By the 1920s, lard's dominance was over. Crisco wasn't just an alternative — it was the new standard.
Chapter 6: The Health Question — Then vs. Now
Here's where it gets interesting: The health arguments made against lard in 1911 have been largely reversed by modern science. But by then, the damage (to lard's reputation, at least) was done.
The Original Claims (1911-1950s)
| Claim |
About Lard |
About Crisco |
| Purity |
"Dirty, unsanitary rendering" |
"Pure, laboratory-made" |
| Digestibility |
"Hard on the stomach" |
"Easily digestible" |
| Cholesterol |
"Clogs arteries" |
"No cholesterol" |
| Kosher |
Non-kosher (pig) |
Kosher-parve |
What Modern Science Says (2020s)
38-43%
Saturated Fat in Lard
~0g
Trans Fat in Pure Lard
47%
Monounsaturated Fat in Lard
Same as Olive Oil
Lard's Oleic Acid Content
The twist: Modern research has actually rehabilitated lard's reputation in some ways:
- Lard's saturated fat: While lard has saturated fat (~38-43%), it's actually less than butter (51%) and much less than tropical oils like coconut oil (82%).
- Monounsaturated fats: Lard is ~47% oleic acid — the same heart-healthy fat in olive oil!
- Vitamin D: Lard contains natural vitamin D — something vegetable oils don't have.
- No trans fats: Pure, unhydrogenated lard contains zero trans fats. Crisco's original formula required partial hydrogenation — which created artificial trans fats.
- Trans fats in Crisco: Here's the irony. The original Crisco, through the hydrogenation process, contained significant trans fats — now known to be far more harmful than saturated fats. (Crisco reformulated in recent years to eliminate trans fats.)
What the Science Actually Says
According to modern nutrition research:
- Replacing saturated fats with polyunsaturated fats does reduce cardiovascular risk
- But the worst fats are artificial trans fats — which were endemic to partially hydrogenated vegetable shortenings like original Crisco
- Lard, in moderation, may not be the health villain it was portrayed to be
- The demonization of saturated fat itself is now being questioned by some researchers
Chapter 7: Around the World — Where Lard Still Reigns
While America abandoned lard, much of the world never stopped using it. Here's where it's still a culinary staple:
🇲🇽 Mexico
Lard (mantequilla or grasa de cerdo) remains essential in Mexican cooking. It's the traditional fat for:
- Refried beans — the name literally comes from Spanish frijoles refritos, traditionally cooked in lard
- Tamales — the masa dough is traditionally made with lard for fluffiness
- Tortillas — authentic tortillas often use lard
- Salsas and moles — lard creates the rich flavor base
When the Spanish introduced pigs to Mexico in the 1500s, lard quickly became central to the cuisine that developed.
🇪🇸 Spain
Spain has used lard (manteca) for centuries, especially in southern and rural cooking:
- Mantecados and polvorones — traditional Christmas sweets made with lard for over 400 years
- Catalan pastries — coca and ensaïmada use lard in the dough
- Andalusian breakfasts — manteca colorá (lard with paprika) on toast
- Traditional frying Spanish restaurants still fry — many in lard for the distinctive flavor
🇵🇹 Portugal
Northern Portugal maintains strong traditions with lard:
- Bifanas — pork sandwiches often cooked/braised in lard
- Chouriço and sausages — traditionally cooked in lard
- Leitão — suckling pig marinated and roasted in lard
- Rojões — seared pork cubes traditionally cooked in lard
🇨🇳 China
Rendered pork fat (zhūyóu) is a fundamental Chinese cooking ingredient:
- Historical staple — used for thousands of years before vegetable oils became common
- Stir-frying — adds distinct flavor and mouthfeel to dishes
- Preservation — before refrigeration, lard was crucial for preserving foods
- Regional dishes — especially valued in Sichuan, Hunan, and Jiangsu cuisines
- Ramen — Japanese ramen frequently uses torikara (chicken lard) as a topping
🇮🇹 Italy & 🇫🇷 France
In parts of Europe, especially rural areas:
- Italy — strutto (rendered lard) is used in some traditional recipes, especially in the south
- France — saindoux (lard) is used in some regional cuisines, particularly for pastry
- Both countries largely switched to butter for prestige cooking, but lard remains in traditional/regional dishes
Chapter 8: The Real Legacy
So what can we learn from this story?
The Bottom Line
- Crisco won through marketing, not nutrition. The health claims against lard were largely unproven in 1911 and have since been complicated by modern science.
- "Processed" isn't always worse. Crisco was the first "ultra-processed food" — and we now understand these products carry hidden risks that animal fats don't.
- The trans fat problem. Ironically, the hydrogenation process that made Crisco possible created trans fats — now considered more dangerous than the saturated fat in lard.
- Other cultures knew better. Mexico, Spain, Portugal, and China never abandoned lard — and their cuisines are celebrated worldwide.
- We're coming full circle. Recently, there's been a renaissance of traditional fats — butter, lard, tallow — as consumers seek alternatives to ultra-processed foods.
"The story of Crisco isn't just about a product — it's about how America learned to distrust traditional foods in favor of industrial alternatives, and how one company orchestrated that shift."