This is how the instant soup invention (and a €9.2 billion business) was cooked up

Few photographs of him survive. Most are black and white portraits dating from the late 19th century. They depict a stoic but amusing Julius Maggi, in his forties, looking into the camera, wearing a dark jacket, lined with a white shirt, and adorned with a light-colored tie. His face features wire-frame glasses and a thick mustache. Today, he is considered the father of instant soups, a market segment that in 2024 moved €9.2 billion worldwide and is expected to grow 4% until 2031, according to calculations by the consulting firm Reanin. He is also the founder of one of Nestlé's flagship brands: Maggi. While the Swiss multinational does not break down revenue by brand, the noodles and instant soups (in powder and tablets), mashed potatoes, and condiments it sells are a classic part of its product catalog. But who was Julius Maggi, and how did he build this empire?

Julius Maggi was born on October 9, 1846, in Frauenfeld, a small Swiss town with a population of around 3,450 at the time. His father ran a flour mill, and Maggi eventually inherited the business. In 1880, already at the helm of the family business, he became determined to find a product that would speed up and facilitate the cooking process. He had realized that the entry of women into the workforce was disrupting eating and consumption habits. Women were the ones in charge of cooking, but with shifts in factories, they could devote less and less time to it. In 1882, chance brought Julius Maggi into contact with the physician Fridolin Schuler.

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Dr. Schuler is still a prominent figure in Switzerland today. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Swiss welfare state and a driving force behind the protection of factory workers' rights. Among his concerns was the nutrition of the poorest classes. "He is the author of the report The working-class diet (1884), which strongly criticized the widespread consumption of alcohol as a nutritional supplement," recalls the country's Federal Social Security Office in an article dedicated to him. Like Maggi, he was thinking about creating a food that was cheaper than meat but also very nutritious. A new type of flour made from peas and beans came out. In 1885, the invention was launched on the market under the Maggi brand, in the form of instant soup. Soon with more exotic flavors: truffle seasoning, and even a turtle flavor. They were an immediate success. name, to avoid the scams of imitations.

In 1912 the inventor died, but he did so under the Allgemeine Maggi-Gesellschaft company, a holding company that had spread the brand 6 product that made it very identifiable, in addition to a powerful advertising campaign. There were posters advertising the brand on public transport, but also vans that handed out free samples. 21,000 servings of food using one of Maggi's products. Today, the Maggi logo is present in nearly 100 countries and appears on the packaging of up to 7,000 different products, taking into account all the formats sold for each product.