Nabisco

Nabisco

Nabisco, short for the National Biscuit Company, was founded in 1898 in the United States, following the merger of several regional bakeries. Headquartered in New York City, the company quickly established itself as one of America’s leading producers of biscuits and crackers.

Among its earliest successes was the Uneeda Biscuit, the first product sold in a moisture-proof, sealed package – a major innovation at the time. Over the years, Nabisco became known for household favourites such as Oreo (introduced in 1912), Ritz Crackers, and Chips Ahoy!

Although Nabisco is primarily associated with food products, the company also played a small but memorable role in British football card history.

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Nabisco issued a number of football trading card sets in the UK, often in conjunction with its Shredded Wheat cereal brand. 

In 1981, Nabisco merged with Standard Brands to form Nabisco Brands, which in turn became part of RJR Nabisco, a conglomerate formed by merging with tobacco giant R.J. Reynolds. The company was famously acquired in a massive leveraged buyout in the late 1980s, one of the most high-profile in corporate history.

Nabisco later became part of Kraft Foods, and following Kraft’s corporate split in 2012, its global snack business – including the Nabisco brand – became part of Mondelez International.