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Cadbury's Bournville Factory

Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

Too true. I was young and fit then so I knew I was on a winner. I remember Pauline had so many friends at Cadbury's I think we used to go to a wedding every fortnight for about 3 year's. I have attached a photo from 1963/5 of a retirement presentation with most of the crazy gang on.cad1 copy.jpg
 
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One and a half glasses of fresh cream milk in every half pound of Cadbury's milk chocolate ... remember that? Viv.

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The 47 million eggs/ year would refer to the larger eggs, not including the creme eggs. The earlier statement that 1.2 million/ day of creme eggs would not fit with that if they were included. Back in the early 1970s, when they were hit with yeast problems giving what the Sunday Times called "exploding eggs", 25 million had to be recycled, and that was not the total years production and was not long after they were first produced.
 
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Easter greetings to you Paul too and to everyone on the forum. If that film doesn't get people salivating nothing will Radiorails! Hi Mike, that must be where they got their explosive egg advertising idea from. Always thought it was a bit off the wall. - oops sorry no pun intended. Viv.
 
Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

Yum, yum, yum, yum, yum ....... Bet these put a smile on our brave men's faces when they received 20,000 packages of them during WW1. Viv.

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Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

Carolina, these must have been received with such gratitude. Even at home they would have been luxuries. Viv.


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Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

Seen last week at the Gloucester Waterways Museum.

Diana Howarth - 'Gloucester Docks with Cadbury Barges'



Diana Howarth - 'Gloucester Docks with Cadbury Barges'

Completed in 1970 the oil painting shows barges about to enter the Victoria Basin. Chocolate crumb and milk were transported to Cadbury's factory at Bournville by barge. Shipping the crumb, which came from Ireland, was commercially important to Gloucester Docks.

The painting was commissioned by Dorothy White for her husband Leon who had worked at Bournville.
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Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

That's interesting Ell. The chocolate crumb seems to have been transported quite some way too. This link is a tribute to Chocolate Charlie who transported the 'chip' for many years in the barge the 'Mendip' from Ellesmere Port to Bournville. The journey took 14 hours through 50 locks and he did the round trip twice a week. Viv.

https://www.waterwaysongs.co.uk/chocolate_charlie.htm


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Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

In the 19th century it was permissible to use the images of the Queen and the royal family for advertising. Here Queen Victoria is shown with the Princess of Wales en route to Windsor.


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Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

A good image Wendy. But am not sure the caption is not quite correct, as the great exhibition was in 1851 not 1853, unless the advert was used in 1853
 
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It may have been a typo when I saved the photo Mike. Thanks for pointing it out though.
 
Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

Vivienne14
Only just seen seen your link on Chocolate Charlie running from Ellesmere Port.
We lived in Islington on the Shrewsbury branch (near Newport) for 20+ years so that the Shropie was quite close. We regularly jogged or rode along the canal & passed the dock at the end of the viaduct owned by Cadbury including the surrounding dairy farms where they picked up milk for delivery to Bournville. Perhaps Charlie was one of the carriers but Im not sure how they kept it cool as it was loaded in the old galanised(?) churns
The dock was still there but unused when we left in the early 2000's. This was at the road bridge over the canal at Knighton (Adbaston)
John
 
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Have you seen this link John? Surprised the churns were transported on deck, imagined them to be below deck (well in summer) but I guess there wouldn't be sufficient room. Love the 'churn tower' must be quite unique.

https://www.richardhill.co.uk/uploads/3/cadbury_chocolate_canal-pdf

It would have been a clever business move by Cadbury's to mix the milk and cocoa ('crumb') at the point where milk was available in large dairy farming areas such as Hereford for example.

I think it's an interesting production process, especially in the way it developed over time.

Viv.
 
Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

And remember folks there's one and a half glasses of full cream milk in every half pound of Cadbury's Milk Chocolate! That advert always puzzled me as a child as I couldn't understand why the chocolate wasn't runny, like a chocolate milk shake or hot cocoa. Viv.

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Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

Viv
The original purpose of crumb production was to produce an intermediate product that would keep until needed, unlike raw milk. The fact that chocolate produced this way had a pleasant caramalised
taste, which distinguished it from other milk chocolates was later realised and led to Cadbury's Dairy Milk. By the 1970s the only milk chocolate produced by Cadburys in the UK, and most of that produced overseas, was crumb chocolate. It is unfortunate that now for many lines inferior milk powder chocolate is bought in from Barry Callabaut, and we have company spokesmen saying for example that "Creme Eggs were never described as a Cadburys Dairy Milk line" They were not, I agree, but ALL Cadburys milk chocolate was once made by the crumb process,and thus had its characteristic taste, though there were variations on the exact recipe to fit whatever product was made.
 
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Viv,
Thanks v much for that link. It looks as tho' the "local pub historians" information about loading churns onto the boats was actually off loading them! or perhaps I misunderstood.
Interestingly, Cadbury's Milk Choc is popular here in Australia but it doesnt, to me anyway, taste the same.
It used to be made here but Kraft closed the works & moved the production to New Zealand (sound familiar?). It took a great hit with the Melomine scandal as a large amount of dairy products for NZ originate from China. It pays to lookout for dairy products from NZ as they are legally allowed to put on the conainers "Product of NZ" even if only the final packaging is carried out there.
John
 
Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

Cadbury office.JPGA photograph taken during c1930 of Dictaphone typists. Compared with today's offices very austere but for the period I suppose up- market. My late mother, Nancy Blackwell, is pictured together with life long friends, Blanche Jackson, Winnie West, Kitty Welsh, Winnie Whitehead (married name), Doris Terry and Nellie Hands. Upon mother's marriage in 1932 to my father who worked on "the deck" a term used for bulk goods inwards, she had to leave taking a job with the City Council in the Public Health Department. For many employees, such as my mother, to work at a clean well run caring factory was such a change in life from the dreadful conditions of inner Birmingham. After work facilities were varied and free, such as swimming ,playing field games, gymnasium, woodwork, shorthand lessons and many more.
 
Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

Certainly was a great employer, and the work force was one of the happiest. Visited the factory and shop, many times. Paul
 
Re: Cadbury's Bourneville

Nice photo Anvilman. A thing of the past, the typing pool. I bet it was pretty cold in there with the high ceiling and tin (?) roof. Viv.
 
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s medals.JPGs medals 2.JPG These are a bronze and silver medal my grandfather won taking part in one of many activities provided by Cadbury's. I believe these were won during competitions in the marvellous building overlooking the playing field which provided, amongst other activities, a gymnasium. These facilities were free of charge even in 1911/12
 
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Lovely piece of family history Anvilman. Cadbury's having such good facilities was way ahead of its time. And women too had their own facilities at a time when equality in employment conditions was rare. I especially like the fact that both men and women feature on the medals. Obviously there was no bar to females being taken seriously in competitive sports. Viv.
 
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Viv. I believe women were taken seriously even to the point of having, girls' grounds (small park), swimming baths , separate cloakrooms, separate entrances to "the chocolate shop" and I'm sure many more. Women were though as highly respected as men.
 
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