Buck_Thorn

Buck_Thorn t1_j6jhqjk wrote

Reply to comment by JUYED-AWK-YACC in TIL Margarine was originally named oleomargarine from Latin for oleum (olive oil) and Greek margarite ("pearl", indicating luster). by joshemerson

But it isn't white anymore. They have been coloring margarine yellow for many years now.

Huh? Why is this being downvoted without any comments? Is margarine still white in some places? If I'm wrong, tell me, don't simply downvote and leave.

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Buck_Thorn t1_j6ip6j3 wrote

Reply to comment by dishonourableaccount in TIL Margarine was originally named oleomargarine from Latin for oleum (olive oil) and Greek margarite ("pearl", indicating luster). by joshemerson

That has nothing to do with it, though. It was because of the dairy farmers in the midwest. They didn't want people to think that it was actual butter.

> Dairy farmers also successfully lobbied for restrictions that banned the use of yellow dyes to make margarine look more appetizing. By 1900, artificially colored butter was contraband in 30 U.S. states. Several states took even more extreme measures to turn consumers away from margarine—they required the product to be dyed an unappealing pink color.

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/25638/surprisingly-interesting-history-margarine

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Buck_Thorn t1_j6iao9y wrote

Reply to comment by yappledapple in TIL Margarine was originally named oleomargarine from Latin for oleum (olive oil) and Greek margarite ("pearl", indicating luster). by joshemerson

That's what we called it when I was a kid. And it came in a plastic bag with a little button in the center that contained yellow food coloring. It was my job to smash that button and knead the bag until the whitish "oleo" was colored uniformly yellow like butter.

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