I was combing the grocery store aisles last week because I needed salt for a recipe. I didn’t need just ANY salt, though. I wanted the very best salt. I saw a plethora of different brands, some name brands and others generic. The one that stood out, of course, was Morton’s Salt. It was packaged better, and featured a nifty little pour spout that the others lacked. Besides that, I’ve known since childhood that the round blue box contained the best salt in the world. How did I know that? Marketing, my friends.

The branding of Morton’s salt began in 1911 with a significant image that has evolved over the years, but essentially stayed the same. We are all familiar with the little girl and umbrella holding a box of salt pouring out behind her, amidst the rain. Her tagline is “When it rains, it pours.” Why? Because in 1914, Morton’s salt publicized their claim to fame: their salt contained magnesium carbonate, an anti-caking agent that allowed the salt to pour freely even in great humidity or rain. Today Morton’s salt doesn’t contain magnesium carbonate anymore; rather, it contains calcium silicate, an equally anti-caking alternative.

So that must mean that Morton’s is indeed the better salt, thus the higher price tag and much higher annual sales. Not too fast: upon reading the ingredients for other leading and generic salt brands I found that they, too, contain anti-caking agents which allow them to also  pour freely in the rain. What is the Morton’s secret, then? Brand. Brand. Brand.

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