Tomatoes by the Vintage Can

Have you done any preserving this year?  We’ve put up three kinds of pickles and next, Sheila tells me, are tomato-based products because TOMATOES!

There was a time when we used lots of commercially canned tomatoes and some of you might enjoy my little collection of can labels. My labels are from the late 70s and early 80s (at the time when Canada was switching to metric but before bar codes).

Tomato labels were interesting to me because the designs appeared to have not changed much over time. For example, on the left is a label for Lynn Valley brand tomatoes that I found under a building on a rusty tin can.  I suspect the label design dates from around 1900. On the right is one from the same company c1980. Different,  but you get the idea.

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A yellow background is striking with the red fruit and that scheme shows up several times. (Sheila’s mother used to say “red and yellow, catch a fellow.” )

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Another design concept was  a black background. This Stoney Creek label is my favourite.

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The Aylmer label feels like an old design that has been cleverly updated, c1978.

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And for a complete departure here is what Dominion Stores did  for their own brand.  The designer was having fun concealing most of the tomatoes and using lower case type. Imagine how modern it felt next to the other labels.

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Labels for Italian tomatoes often looked different even if they were packaged for the Canadian market.

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There was no one like La Bella San Marzano, with plum tomatoes stuck in her crown, on Canadian tomato labels.

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This little mountain climber on  packaging for Italian tomato paste appears to have stepped out of a Wes Anderson movie.

04-01-2013I have not looked critically at the tomato section of a supermarket for a long time so I really don’t know if labels have changed much over the last 30  or 40 years.  I suspect not, but why don’t you take a look and tell me.

Post script

  • Corn had some good labels too but not as many examples as tomato.

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  • Many Italian labels are wonderfully spirited .  I’ve always been a fan of this gal on a pasta box, “bringing in the sheaves.”

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About the author

Stephen Archibald

It’s Stephen Archibald doing the noticing. I’m a huge fan of Nova Scotia’s material culture and cultural landscapes. Twitter (@Cove17 ) made me realize I could share what attracted my attention (perfect for my very short attention) and I’m gratified when folks enjoy my content. Pleased to meet you on the internet.

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