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Liebig's Extract of Meat Company

Building on his theories of the nutritional value of meat fluids, and seeking an inexpensive nutrition source for Europe's poor, Liebig developed a formula for producing beef extract. The details were published in 1847 so that "the benefit of it should... be placed at the command of as large a number of persons as possible by the extension of the manufacture, and consequently a reduction in the cost".

Production was not economically feasible in Europe, where meat was expensive, but in Uruguay and New South Wales, meat was an inexpensive byproduct of the leather industry. In 1865, Liebig partnered with Belgian engineer George Christian Giebert, and was named scientific director of Liebig's Extract of Meat Company, located in Fray Bentos in Uruguay.

Other companies also attempted to market meat extracts under the name "Liebig's Extract of Meat". In Britain, a competitor's right to use the name was successfully defended on the grounds that the name had fallen into general use and become a generic term before the creation of any particular company. The judge asserted that "Purchasers must use their eyes", and considered the presentation of the products to be sufficiently different to enable the discriminating consumer to determine which of the products bore Liebig's signature and was supported by Liebig himself.

Liebig's company initially promoted their "meat tea" for its curative powers and nutritional value as a cheap, nutritious alternative to real meat. But such claims did not hold up to scrutiny. In 1868 the German physiologist Edward Kemmerich ran an experiment involving feeding the extract to a number of dogs. Every one of the dogs died. After claims of its nutritional value were questioned, the company emphasized its convenience and flavor, marketing it as a comfort food.

The Liebig company worked with popular cookery writers in various countries to popularize their products. German cookery writer Henriette Davidis wrote recipes for Improved and Economic Cookery and other cookbooks. Katharina Prato wrote an Austro-Hungarian recipe book, Die Praktische Verwerthung Kochrecepte (1879). Hannah M. Young was commissioned in England to write Practical Cookery Book for the Liebig Company. In the United States, Maria Parloa extolled the benefits of Liebig's extract. Colorful calendars and trading cards were also marketed to popularize the product.

The company also worked with British chemist Henry Enfield Roscoe to develop a related product, which it registered some years after Liebig's death, under the " Oxo " trademark. Oxo was trademarked worldwide in 1899 and in the United Kingdom in 1900. Originally a liquid, Oxo was released in cubed solid form in 1911.