BOVRIL Era

n 1909 the Bovril LTD, a British company with headquarters in London, buys an existing medium size slaughterhouse and it’s farms in Santa Elena, northern Entre Rios. This company founded by Mr. John Lawson Johnston, Canadian businessman that emigrated to London, manufactured his own invention, the beef-extract called "Bovril" (from the Greek word BO = Cow and VRIL = Energy), brand that immediately obtained worldwide recognition. This beef-extract opened a whole new horizon in the meat processing industry. The Bovril slaughterhouse in Santa Elena supplied international markets with corned beef, beef-extract and other beef products. The factory could handle 1,000 heads of cattle per day. Later in time Bovril moved to frozen meatpacking that was exported mainly to England.


In 1970 the founder’s grandson, Mr. Ian Lawson Johnston (heir to the title of Lord Luke that was gained by his father), decides to sell the Bovril Company to the British Company Cavenham. The latter acquired the slaughterhouse and farms of Santa Elena together with the Bovril properties in the entire world.


Nowadays the Bovril brand and all the memorabilia around their advertising campaigns are very popular among collectors from all over the world, and by the way very expensive. For more information about this subject you can actually check in the book, The History of Bovril advertising. Compiled by Peter Hadley, etc. London, [1972]. Shelfmark: Cup.26.e.46.



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