10 Things You Might Not Know About Kellogg's Eggo Brand

You may have toasted them, drizzled syrup on them, and possibly even asked someone to "L'eggo" your Eggo, but how much do you really know about Kellogg's Eggo brand? Today, Eggo is an internationally known brand that has found its way to the hearts and breakfast tables of millions of customers worldwide. However, what some may not know is that behind the brand is a rich, layered history dating back decades.

In 1936, creator Frank Dorsa and his brothers embarked on a mission to create a brand focused on making convenient and delicious food for American families. With humble beginnings in their mother's California kitchen, Dorsa and his family would go on to create Eggo, a food brand that reshaped the way we eat breakfast. Whether you're a lifelong fan or not, these unique facts just might change the way you see that yellow box in your freezer.

While Frank Dorsa is known today as the inventor of Eggo waffles, that is not the first product that came from his kitchen. Believe it or not, the origins of the Eggo brand have nothing to do with breakfast foods at all. When Frank and his brothers, Tony and Sam, launched their food company in the 1930s, they created a mayonnaise product using fresh eggs, inspiring the brand's name "Eggo."

The homemade mayonnaise product gave the brothers their first taste of success, leading them to create other products, like potato chips. Soon after, Eggo made its official step into the breakfast food market, with its first powdered waffle mix. The powdered waffle mix ignited their curiosity in the breakfast food market and helped distinguish them as an inventive food brand. This success would lead the brand to some mild success through the '30s and '40s. However, it took until the 1950s for the Dorsa brothers to create the product they are known best for today.

During WWII, the frozen food industry flourished, due to the fact that tin had to be rationed for military supplies. By the end of the war, 33 million families owned a refrigerator, thus birthing the "TV Dinner" era and upping the demand for frozen foods. While today's freezer aisles are filled with thousands of heat-and-eat options for customers to buy, that was not always the case. 

In fact, the Dorsa brothers had to create a whole new process to create its frozen waffle products. The idea for a frozen waffle came from the Dorsa brother's own realization of how long it took to prepare and clean up after making homemade waffles. 

To make these frozen waffles, the batter would be poured on a specialized carousel waffle iron that could cook thousands of waffles an hour. Once the waffles were cooked, they were then immediately flash-frozen and packaged. The result was a product that maintained the flavor of a fresh waffle without the hassle or mess of making it from scratch. This breakthrough process was the first of its kind, and would forever change the course of breakfast history.

With the success of the frozen waffle product, the Eggo company was gaining more popularity than ever. While Frank Dorsa had created the perfect frozen waffle process, it took longer for his product to adopt the brand's name. Before they became known as Eggo waffles, the company branded this product as "Froffles." The name combined the words "frozen" and "waffles," reflecting the product's makeup.

However, the name Froffles never really caught on, and customers ended up referring to them as Eggo waffles anyways. Customers called them "Eggo" waffles because of the egg flavors that the products had. As the success of these frozen waffles continued to rise, the Dorsa brothers decided to ditch the Froffles name and rebrand. In 1955, the product formally adopted the Eggo name, which they are still known today.

In the 1970's, Eggo was officially acquired by the Kellogg brand, which further pushed the product to a wider audience. In order to promote the new brand, Kellogg created a new marketing campaign in hopes of making Eggo more famous than ever. In 1972, Kellogg released the "L'Eggo My Eggo" campaign, which featured the catchphrase and accompanying tug-of-war commercials. The commercials captured the brand's fun and family-friendly vibe, and the slogan was the beginning of the Eggo brand's explosive success.

The phrase was used as the brand's main marketing catchphrase until 2008, when it was retired. In 2014, the brand brought back the slogan after realizing its impact was irreplaceable. The success of this campaign helped lead to Eggo becoming the best-selling frozen waffle product in America. The success of this marketing campaign also allowed Eggo to take on new collaborations and create additional flavors and products that helped further establish its dominance in the breakfast market.

While Eggo is undeniably a success story, that doesn't mean there haven't been hard moments for the company as a whole. In 2009, Eggo was left with an unprecedented problem: a nationwide shortage of Eggo waffles. Hungry customers were left unsatisfied after 4,500 cases of Eggo waffles were voluntarily recalled by Kellogg.

Kellogg cited the reasons for the recall as being due to heavy rains that shut down a major Eggo plant in Atlanta. However, before the rainstorms, the plant had to be shut down after inspectors found Listeria monocytogenes in some Eggo waffles. According to Supermarket News, a spokesperson for the company said at the time: "Kellogg voluntarily ceased production at the plant, began an investigation to determine a possible cause of contamination and began a regimen of cleaning and sanitizing. Kellogg will execute its hygienic restoration plan under GDA before it resumes production at the plant."

While Eggo waffles are most famous in their classic form, Kellogg has also had Eggo collaborate with several iconic brands over the years. Perhaps the most iconic crossover was in 2007 when Kellogg and The LEGO Group teamed up. Playing off of the similarity in size and shape that LEGO bricks and Eggo waffles have, the two paired up to create waffles modeled after LEGO bricks.

Like real LEGOs, these bricks could be stacked on each other. For this collaboration, Eggo also temporarily changed its slogan to "LEGO my Eggo," and also added the phrase "Toast, Break, and Build." Even though this collaboration is now over, the LEGO-Eggo crossover was a memorable moment for the brand, and it paved the way for other fun collaborations to come. In the years to follow, Eggo has worked with a variety of food companies like Cicis Pizza, Golden West Food Group, Coffee Mate, Two River Coffee Company, and other entertainment companies like Disney.

In 2016, Eggo once again had a massive surge in popularity, and this time it was not for something planned on the company's end. The debut season of "Stranger Things" surprised audiences with a major plot line about Eggo frozen waffles. The show's lead character Eleven developed an obsession for them, and her passion for these frozen treats became a viral phenomenon.

The show's popularity gave an immediate boost to the popularity of Eggo, which became seen as a symbol of the show. By the time that the second season of Stranger Things came to be, Eggo recorded its highest-ever number of social media impressions in a single month. In addition, Eggo waffle consumption saw a 14% year-on-year increase as well. This impressive and unexpected achievement helped introduce Eggo to a younger generation as well as international audiences who may have never heard of them before.

Eggo waffles have always been known for being convenient, but did you know they also are one of the healthier toaster breakfast options on the market? Something that makes Eggo unique is the brand's commitment to not containing any artificial flavors or colors. This change happened in 2015 when Kellogg announced that the brand was going to be making a bold move to eliminate all artificial colors and flavors from its products by 2018.

In addition to this change, Eggo waffles also currently contain nine essential vitamins and minerals, including Calcium carbonate, iron, vitamin A palmitate, vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), and vitamin B12. While Eggo waffles still aren't one of the healthiest breakfast foods, they are making an effort to become a more health-conscious breakfast choice for families across the world. By going natural, Kellogg has positioned itself as a company that cares about the health of its customers, further strengthening the support from fans as a whole.

While Eggo is most famous for its frozen waffles, the brand offers far more than just many may expect. Over the years, Eggo has developed and expanded its frozen product lineup to include a variety of items including frozen pancakes, frozen French toasts, and cereal. 

The company currently offers the following pancake products: Eggo Buttermilk Pancakes, Eggo Blueberry Pancakes, Eggo Chocolatey Chip Pancakes, Eggo Mixed Berry Pancakes, Eggo Protein Vanilla Pancakes, Eggo Protein Blueberry Pancakes, Eggo Minis Pancakes, Eggo Minis Chocolatey Chip Pancakes. For French Toast, they have the Eggo French Toaster Sticks Cinnamon and the Eggo Minis Cinnamon French Toast. 

Eggo Cereal, which has been available on-and-off since 2006, offers flavors like Homestyle, Blueberry, and Chocolate. It should be noted that the cereals are not currently advertised on the Eggo website. These expansive lines show the brand's commitment to creating new and exciting breakfast items for customers that bring flavor and convenience into your morning routine.

In addition to its unique pancake and French toast products, Eggo has also dramatically expanded its waffle line. The brand currently offers 25 waffle variations.

The product lineup includes: Eggo Buttermilk Waffles, Eggo Blueberry Waffles, Eggo Strawberry Waffles, Eggo Cinnamon Churro Waffles, Eggo Homestyle Waffles, Eggo Thick & Fluffy Original Waffles, Eggo Thick & Fluffy Cinnamon Brown Sugar Waffles, Eggo Thick & Fluffy Blueberry Waffles, Eggo Thick & Fluffy Strawberry Cheesecake Waffles, Eggo Thick & Fluffy Whole Grain Original Waffles, Eggo Thick & Fluffy Dark Chocolate Chip Waffles, Eggo Protein Chocolate Chip Brownie Waffles, Eggo Protein Strawberry Delight Waffles, Eggo Protein Buttermilk Vanilla waffles, Eggo Chocolate Chip Belgian Style Street Waffles, Eggo Buttery Maple Belgian Style Street Waffles, Eggo Vanilla Bean Belgian Style Street Waffles, Eggo Minis Berry Blast Toast Waffles, Eggo Mini Homestyle Waffles, Eggo Mickey & Minnie Homestyle Waffles, Emoji Homestyle Waffles, Eggo Froot Loops Waffles, and Eggo Minis Cinnamon Toast Waffles.

This impressive assortment of waffles shows just how far Eggo has come from its humble beginnings nearly a century years ago. With an impressive backstory, unique flavors, iconic pop culture moments, and a meaningful brand identity, Eggo has solidified itself as a part of breakfast history.