Benjamin Eisenstadt
| Benjamin Eisenstadt | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 7, 1906 New York City |
| Died | April 8, 1996 New York City |
| Occupation | Inventor |
| Spouse(s) | Betty Gellman (1910-2001) (m. 1931) |
| Children | Marvin Eisenstadt Gladys Eisenstadt Ira Eisenstadt Ellen Eisenstadt |
Benjamin Eisenstadt (December 7, 1906 – April 8, 1996) was the designer of the modern sugar packet and developer of Sweet'N Low. He was the founder of the Cumberland Packing Corporation.[1]
Biography
He was born in New York City on December 7, 1906. He attended Brooklyn College then operated a cafeteria across from the Brooklyn Navy Yard. He switched to making tea bags after his cafeteria business declined.[1]
He came up with the idea of single servings of table sugar to utilize his tea bag machinery. He shopped the idea to the major sugar producers, but was unsuccessful. Since he had not secured a patent, sugar producers were free to use his idea without paying royalties.[1]
In 1957 he came up with a formula for a powdered saccharin sweetener. Previously saccharin was sold as liquid drops, or tiny tablets. He mixed the saccharin with dextrose to bulk it up to a teaspoon sized portion, added cream of tartar, and calcium silicate as anti-caking agents. He marketed it in bright pink packets.[1]
His company was also the first to package soy sauce and other single serving condiments. After his company was successful he became chairman of the board of the foundation for Maimonides Medical Center.[1]
He married Betty Gellman (1910-2001) on October 27, 1931 while living at 1250 44th Street in Brooklyn. They had the following children: Marvin Eisenstadt who married Barbara; Gladys Eisenstadt; Ira Eisenstadt who married Deirdre Howley, and Ellen Eisenstadt who married Herbert Cohen.[2]
Death
Benjamin died at age 89 after complications from open heart surgery. When Betty died in 2001 she had removed Ellen and her children from her will.[1]
Legacy
Maimonides Medical Center has the Eisenstadt Administration Building and the Gellman Pavilion. The Gellman Pavilion was named in memory of Dr. Abraham Gellman, the brother of Betty Gellman (1910-2001).
Patent
Timeline
- 1906 Birth in Brooklyn
- 1945 Cumberland Cafeteria closes
- 1947 Cumberland Cafeteria converted to Cumberland Packaging Corporation
- 1956 Marvin Eisenstadt joins the company
- 1970 "Sweet'N Low" registered trademark of Cumberland Packaging Corporation
- 1996 Death in Brooklyn
- 2001 Death of Betty Gellman, his widow
References
Further reading
- New York Times; December 29, 1996. "Household Names"
- "Sweet and Low," by Rich Cohen.
