Ten years ago, Zhou Libo, a Shanghai-style actor who just became popular on the Internet at that time, successfully evoked a wave of memory killings because he told a joke about malt extract. Until today, you can still see the memories and nostalgia of malt extract from time to time on the Internet.
This once "family necessity" seems to disappear into many people's lives overnight.
▍ What exactly is malt extract?
In 2009, Zhou Libo had a joke in "Thirty Years of Laughing and Talking", saying that when he went to a classmate's house to be a guest, his classmate's mother gave him a cup of malt extract, but when he picked up the cup and looked at it, he could actually see the opposite side through it. Looking closely again, there are five or six malted milk essence lying at the bottom of the cup, and my classmates and mothers keep persuading: "Adjust it, adjust it."
▲ For many people, malt extract is accompanied by their growth.
In that era when materials were not abundant, even malt extract should be saved.
Of course, children will not be satisfied with such a "thirst-quenching" way of eating. What they love most is to scoop up malt extract with a spoon and send it directly into their mouths, crunching and chewing, and their mouths are full of sweet breath and enjoying it very much.
However, this way of eating is too shabby for that frugal era, so children can only secretly eat a few mouthfuls when adults are not at home, and they must also restore the position of the malt cream jar to avoid leaking clues, otherwise there is a high probability that they will not escape a fat beating.
What exactly is malted milk essence, and is it worth taking such a big risk for children in those days?
▲ Wheat milk essence raw materials. Figure /7788
The name malt extract is actually very real, and three words cover most raw materials.
"Wheat" refers to "malt extract", which is produced by germination, baking, saccharification and other processes with Ersuo barley as the main raw material.
"Milk" refers to cream, milk powder, condensed milk, etc. used in the formula of malt extract;
"Essence" refers to raw materials such as glucose, maltose and malt extract used in the production of malt extract, and these raw materials all have a certain dextrin content.
According to this classification, in addition to the well-known malted milk essence and Lok Koufu, there are many solid drinks that actually belong to malted milk essence, such as Hollick, Merlot and Ahuatian.
▍ How did the world's first cup of malt extract come from?
In the field of malt extract, the most famous is Horlicks, which was also the first cup of malt extract in the world more than 100 years ago.
▲Horlicks。 Figure /conveniencestore
In the middle of19th century, the only food for babies is still breast milk, but once the mother has no milk for health or other reasons, the baby's survival will be threatened.
1867, Justus von Liebig, a German chemist, invented a product called "baby soup", the main components of which were wort, wheat and milk, and advertised in newspapers, making it the earliest commercialized infant formula in the world.
At that time, in addition to chemists like Justus von Liebig, many companies were also researching and producing baby food, such as the Horlick brothers from Britain.
▲ William Horlick
My brother James Horlick is a chemist. He works for a baby dry food company. He tried to transform and produce "baby soup" products in Britain, but he didn't succeed.
While his younger brother William Horlick moved to the United States across the Atlantic in 1869. Four years later, James also came to Chicago, and the two brothers established "J&; Whorricks "company, which produces baby food.
▲“J& amp; Whorricks "company's factory. Figure/hol
1883, the malt milk beverage produced by the two brothers won the US patent No.278967, because the solid powder beverage they produced can be brewed in hot water. 1887, when this drink was sold, it was officially named "malted milk".
Because the solid powder is light in weight, easy to carry, not easy to rot and high in heat, Hollick quickly came out of the baby food and became a perfect emergency kit.
1At the end of the 9th century and the beginning of the 20th century, polar explorers began to explore, and Hollick Company also sponsored polar exploration in line with this trend, and malt extract was also brought to the South Pole and the North Pole.
▲ Haolike was taken to the polar region. Figure /Wikipedia
Richard Byrd, a mountaineer, named a mountain on the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica "Horlicks Mountains" to commemorate the $30,000 sponsorship from Ricker.
In addition to polar exploration, there are also malt extract figures in the war. In World War I and World War II, it became a drink for soldiers to replenish energy, and even became part of the escape equipment of allied crew in World War II.
After the war, malt extract also appeared in the London Olympic Games in 1948. In more than 100 years, malt extract has changed from a baby food to a world-famous beverage.
▍ In China, malt extract was once expensive as a luxury.
For China people other than Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, Haolike is still a little strange, but he is more familiar with the domestic malt extract.
▲ Shanghai malt extract
The first cup of malt extract made in China dates back to the 1930s, but it was actually made by a pharmaceutical factory-Shanghai Jiufu Pharmaceutical Factory.
Huang Chujiu, the founder of Jiufu Pharmaceutical Factory, is also a legend in Shanghai. In his early years, he sold ophthalmic drugs, opened a clinic and set up a pharmaceutical factory, and founded the first pharmaceutical group in China. Later, he established the Shanghai World in cross-border entertainment circles.
▲ Shanghai World was once the most attractive entertainment place for citizens.
However, after the death of Huang Chujiu in 193 1, many companies he founded encountered operational difficulties, and Jiufu Pharmaceutical Factory, which was taken over by Huang Chujiu's son-in-law Zang Boyong, was no exception.
In order to cope with the company's difficulties, Zang Boyong set his sights on the food manufacturing industry. At that time, Hua Fu malt extract (Ovomaltine, the original name of Ahuatian) was very popular in Shanghai, so Jiufu Pharmaceutical Factory introduced the formula from Switzerland and developed the domestic "Lekoufu malt extract" in 1937.
Lok Koufu malt extract sold very well after it went on the market. However, with the outbreak of War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the Liberation War, the situation became more and more turbulent, the imported raw materials were also affected, and the production of malt extract was also facing difficulties.
By 1949, Jiufu Pharmaceutical Factory had only 1 1 employees, and malt extract was on the verge of production suspension.
1953, Jiufu Pharmaceutical Factory was the first batch of public-private partnerships, and no longer produced food, so Lok Koufu Mairujing was completely discontinued.
▲ the export is happy. Figure /7788
Until 196 1 year, Shanghai Coffee Factory took over this product, and used the trademark of "Fu" and named it Lekoufu. At that time, the products produced were mainly exported abroad.
According to the records of Shanghai Coffee Factory, during the Cultural Revolution, the trademark and name of "Fu" for domestic sales of Lekoufu were regarded as "four old", and it was forced to change the domestic sales of Lekoufu to "Shanghai brand malt extract", but the sales volume was not affected.
However, in the 1970s, because Brazil's cocoa beans could not be imported, the production of malt extract was seriously affected, so Shanghai Coffee Factory improved the formula, studied malt extract without cocoa powder, and fortified the nutrition, which led to the "Shanghai brand fortified malt extract".
▲ This is the malt extract that many people remember. Figure/Wen Wei Po
Subsequently, the results of "innovation" continued, and products such as Ginseng Mairujing, Coconut Mairujing and Jujube Mairujing appeared successively.
Shanghai malt extract is getting more and more popular, and food factories in other places have also joined the ranks of producing malt extract.
1985 the first national appraisal meeting of high-quality products of malt extract was held in Tianjin, and six national high-quality foods of malt extract were selected:
1, Shanghai Shanghai Coffee Factory Fuzi brand Lok Kou Fu; 2. Guangming brand malt extract (cocoa type) from Shanghai No.2 Dairy Factory; 3. Guangzhou brand malt extract from Guangzhou Dairy Factory, Guangdong Province; 4. Taihu Brand of Wuxi Dairy Factory in Jiangsu Province strengthens malt extract; 5. Tianjin Great Wall Food Factory Great Wall Brand Cocoa Almond Malt Cream; 6. Wanda brand cocoa and fortified malt extract from Wandashan Food Factory in Heilongjiang Province.
▲ Tianjin malt extract
After the 1990 s, with the gradual abundance of materials, malt extract became less "precious". Even the once first brand of malt extract, "Fu" brand Lok Koufu, was transferred to Novartis, Switzerland. Later, it was turned around several times, but it has lost its former scenery.
▍ Unexpectedly, Ahuatian is also a kind of malt extract.
By the time the post-80s and post-90s grew up, malted milk essence was no longer popular. At that time, it was Gao Legao and Ahuatian from abroad who dominated the TV.
Many parents will buy it to supplement their children's nutrition, but in fact, Avata is also a malt extract.
However, Gao Legao, the competitor of Ahuatian in the same period, does not belong to malt extract, because its main component is cocoa powder, and it does not contain malt and milk components.
▲ Like many malt extract, we found that the best way for Ahuatian to eat is dry, so Ahuatian Company simply produced dry wit beans, which is also a favorite snack of many people when they were young.
1904, Iowa was born in Switzerland. Its German is Ovomaltine, "ovum" is egg, "malt" is malt, and its name is as straightforward as malted milk. Later, Iowa added cocoa powder to the formula.
At first, Avatar was the designated drink after many ice and snow sports in Switzerland, because a cup of freshly brewed Avatar not only warms the body but also supplements physical strength. However, in the East, it has turned into a "nourishing product".
Whether in Shanghai in 1930s or Hong Kong in 1940s, advertisements of Ahuatian appeared as nutritional products. It seems that the ideas of malted milk essence all over the world were similar at the beginning of marketing.
▲ In the 1930s, the advertisement of Hua Fu Mairujing (the original name of Ahuatian).
It was not until the 1970s that Avatar introduced a new marketing strategy in Hong Kong that it gradually became a popular drink. Today, in many tea restaurants in Hong Kong, Ahuatian can still be found.
However, Iowa's marketing for children has not changed.
1988, Avatar launched a TV advertisement in Hong Kong, in the background of "arm wrestling" between pirates and children. After drinking a cup of Avatar's little boy, his strength increased greatly and he finally won the pirate.
1997, in a TV advertisement in mainland China, children who drink Avatar will become smarter and can easily solve the math problems given by their teachers, so that everyone says that "children who drink Avatar are really amazing".
Now, of course, we all know that Iowa is not so magical.
▍ Many delicious foods are destined to be passers-by.
Nowadays, malted milk essence is of course out of fashion, and even hard to find. Therefore, in forums and social networking sites, people often ask, how did the malted milk essence disappear? I really want to buy another can.
In fact, as long as you are a little careful or attentive, you will find that both Lekoufu and fortified malt extract existed on the e-commerce website, and it is not troublesome to buy them.
The reason for this embarrassing situation is actually that malt extract is no longer important to the life of contemporary people.
▲ It is reported that there are supermarkets selling malt extract in Shanghai, and only occasionally elderly people come to buy a can.
In the era of material shortage, malt, milk powder, egg powder and other ingredients contained in malt cream can really supplement nutrition, but now, these nutritional elements are not lacking, and there are better substitutes.
In addition, the sugar content of more than 30% will also make modern people worry about whether the sugar intake will exceed the standard after drinking a few more mouthfuls.
What's more, the taste of malt extract is not so irreplaceable, and compared with ready-to-drink drinks, it is not convenient, so even Ahuatian, the most common place to visit it is the milk tea shop.
Many factors are doomed that malt extract will not have its former glory.
Every small change in industry, science and technology and the times will inadvertently affect our lives. Things are changing, people's lifestyles are changing, and some delicious foods are destined to enter the history books.
Like malt extract, they may become the details of our memories one day, but they are hard to be the protagonists of life.