Ovaltine Cleans Its Can

Ovaltine, which originated in Switzerland as Ovomaltine (meaning “egg and malt”), has a variety of logos around the world. In the United States, Ovaltine was best known for its Rich Chocolate flavor, with an All-American script logo on a blue oval.

The old logo represented years of commercials where children asked for more Rich Chocolate Ovaltine, which tastes great and is great for you.  The can stood out on shelves with big, bold, high contrast letters, in a friendly script.

The new logo sports a cleaner, simpler, more European style. It seems they are going for a more upscale look, while also trying to illustrate the drink mix’s great taste.  The flavor has been moved to the bottom of the container, and there is no mention of tasting great. The can is also labeled as “Rich Chocolate Mix” instead of “Rich Chocolate” so consumers don’t expect premade chocolate milk.

Overall, it looks weak, pretentious, and blends in with every other chocolate mix on the shelves. I noticed Nestle’s name on the can, so maybe Nestle is trying to market Nesquik for children and Ovaltine for sophisticated adults.

As a nostalgic adult who also enjoys interesting packaging, I greatly miss the old cans. Fortunately, most stores still carry the old style, so it will be a while before I only have boring cans of chocolatety powder.

Which Rich Chocolate Ovaltine would you rather put in your shopping cart?

Subscribe for more web design tips!
Post a comment or leave a trackback: Trackback URL.

3 Responses

1. Harris says:

   July 22, 2009 at 10:05 am

   Now I drink “the Kangaroo.” It’s the cheapest and healthiest option. Only from Krasdale.

   Reply
2. Steve says:

   October 11, 2009 at 10:13 pm

   I was very disappointed when I saw the new canisters appearing on the shelves. I, too, bought the product as a nostalgic adult, hoping that some combination of the placebo effect and the actual vitamin contents would marginally bolster my health and justify its purchase over, say, Nesquik. Now it doesn’t seem like vitamins hidden in chocolate milk anymore; it seems like a geriatric supplement. It’s not only the new packaging, the powder itself is different: paradoxically finer grained but now insoluble in milk. I wrote to the company and asked why the change. They simply told me that after Nestle took over, they changed the look,but that they left the formula the same. I’m not buying it, figuratively. Pretty soon I may not be buying it, literally.

   Reply
3. vdb says:

   December 19, 2009 at 3:16 pm

   Easily, the article is really the greatest on this worthy topic. I agree with your conclusions and will eagerly look forward to your upcoming updates. Just saying thanks will not just be adequate, for the exceptional lucidity in your writing. I will right away grab your rss feed to stay abreast of any updates. Genuine work and much success in your business endeavors!

   Reply