Reddi-wip

Reddi-Wip is a brand of nitrous oxide propelled, sweetened whipped cream produced by ConAgra Foods. It is sold in the following varieties: Original, Extra-Creamy, Light, Fat-Free, Non-Dairy, and Chocolate. In the early 1980s, then Reddi-Wip brand owner Hunt-Wesson Foods briefly experimented with Amaretto and Butterscotch flavors, which never took off.

The Original and Extra-Creamy come in 7oz. and 14oz. cans. All other varieties, except Chocolate, come in 7oz. cans only; with Chocolate available in 6.5oz. cans only.

Reddi-Wip was originally packaged for years in Chicago, Illinois by Hunt-Wesson Foods and Beatrice Foods at Brookhill Farms Dairy until 1982. Operations were then moved to Holland, Michigan, and later sold to ConAgra Foods. In 2007, ConAgra relocated the production of Reddi-Wip to its Indianapolis, Indiana facility.

Reddi-wip was invented in 1948 by Aaron S. "Bunny" Lapin (January 5, 1914 in St. Louis, Missouri – July 10, 1999). He attended the University of Missouri before attending the Washington University School of Law in St. Louis.

Starting out during the food rationing era of World War II, he invented Sta-Whip as a cream substitute using vegetable oil. After the war, he invented Reddi-Wip in 1948, using real cream, along with a new valve more suitable for whipped cream, with fluting to create a pattern and a tilt-to-open design that pops back to the center to preserve the propellant gases. Other similar products were on the market at the time including the non-dairy Rich's Whip Topping and Delsoy Presto Whip, which were developed at Henry Ford's soybean laboratories. Delsoy Presto Whip was packed in pressurized cans developed for military insecticide sprays during the war.

Lapin applied in 1949 and received a patent for “dispensing valves for gas pressure containers” in 1955. He achieved national distribution in 1954, and sold his company in 1963 to Norton Simon Inc. Norton Simon merged with Beatrice Foods in 1985. Then, in 1990, it was acquired by ConAgra, Norton Simon's corporate heir. Reddi-Wip remains one of ConAgra Foods' major brands and is the second most eaten brand of whipped topping in the U.S.

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