Heinz Baked Beans

Heinz Baked Beans
Heinz baked beans on toast
Product typeCanned food
OwnerKraft Heinz
Produced byHeinz
CountryUnited Kingdom (actual product) and United States (producer)
Introduced1886 (1886)
TaglineBeans Meanz Heinz created by Maurice Drake

Heinz Baked Beans are a brand of baked beans produced by the H.J. Heinz Company. In the United Kingdom, they are sold as "Heinz Beanz".

History

Heinz 57 trade card from the 19th century, promoting various products; including Beans and the Heinz pickle

In 1886, Heinz Baked Beans were first sold in the UK at the Fortnum & Mason department store in London.[1] After opening its first overseas office in London in 1896, the company opened its first UK factory in Peckham, south London, in 1905. This was followed by a second factory at Harlesden, north-west London in 1919. Production was started at a former munitions factory at Standish, near Wigan, in 1946. A new factory opened in Kitt Green, also near Wigan, in 1958.[2]

The Heinz company created a marketing campaign to encourage people to eat more beans in 1927.[3]

Between 1941 and 1948, the Ministry of Food classified Heinz Baked Beans as an "essential food" as part of its wartime rationing system.[4]

In 1967, Heinz launched an advertising campaign with the slogan "Beanz Meanz Heinz". The phrase was created by advertising executive Maurice Drake and went on to become one of the best-known advertising slogans in the United Kingdom. Drake later said the slogan was "written over two pints of beer in The Victoria pub in Mornington Crescent".[5]

In 1998, Heinz Baked Beans was voted one of 12 top brands of the millennium in the United Kingdom.[6]

The beans were rebranded as "Heinz Baked Beanz" in the United Kingdom in 2004, then again rebranded as "Heinz Beanz" in 2008, dropping the word "Baked", as the original title was "a bit of a mouthful to pronounce", according to the company.[7][8][9]

As of 2012, the Heinz factory in Kitt Green was one of the largest food factories in Europe, and produced more than one billion cans of food every year.[10]

In 2016, Heinz's advertising campaign featuring people using empty beans cans as musical instruments was banned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) on safety grounds.[11]

In 2001, the UK's Food Standards Agency examined canned goods for the endocrine disruptor BPA (bisphenol A) and found traces in 38 of 62 samples. Heinz is one of the companies that says it uses BPA.[12][13] BPA forms part of the membrane that lines the cans. The Heinz company put out a statement – "Although UK and European food authorities have stated that minute levels of BPA in can coatings are safe, Heinz remains committed to moving to alternatives."[14][15][16] By 2019, Heinz UK claimed to have switched to non-BPA cans for most of its products such as most popular varieties of beans.[17]

Manufacture outside of the UK

Heinz Beans are manufactured and/or distributed in several Commonwealth countries outside of the UK.

Canada

Heinz tinned beans have been manufactured in Canada for more than 100 years[18]. The "Heinz Beans Original in Tomato Sauce" tin looks similar to the UK version but has a bit of a different recipe. Several additional styles of Heinz beans are manufactured in Canada, including "British Style" and a version made with maple syrup.[19][20][21]

New Zealand

Heinz Beans "English Recipe" are manufactured in New Zealand.[22] Heinz Beans in Tomato Sauce Vegetarian that are distributed in Malaysia are made in New Zealand.[23]

Production method

A can of Heinz Beanz

Heinz Baked Beans are produced by sealing raw haricot beans and tomato sauce in the cans, which are then placed in large pressure cookers. This gives the sauce its thick consistency and ensures a long shelf life for the product.[24]

A standard 415g can contains an average of 465 beans.[25]

Beanz Museum

Heinz opened the Beanz Museum as a pop-up exhibit in Covent Garden, London, between 30 August and 1 September 2019. It contained an interactive immersive exhibit about the history of Heinz Baked Beans to mark their 150th anniversary.[26]

References

  1. ↑ "Fortnum and Mason. Our History. 1800s". Fortnum & Mason. Archived from the original on 3 August 2009. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  2. ↑ "Heinz | Home".
  3. ↑ "Joys of living campaign".
  4. ↑ "Beans – Did you know". Heinz. Retrieved 28 February 2012.
  5. ↑ "Our products – Heinz Baked Beanz". HEINZ. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
  6. ↑ Saunders, Andrew (1 January 2008). "The MT Interview: Dave Woodward". Management Today. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  7. ↑ "Heinz revampz beanz campaign". The Guardian. 17 July 2004. Retrieved 8 November 2025.
  8. ↑ "Heinz harks back to beanz golden age with £5m ad drive". Campaign. 19 July 2004. Retrieved 8 November 2025.
  9. ↑ "Heinz baked beans become Heinz Beanz". The Telegraph. 11 July 2008. Retrieved 8 November 2025.
  10. ↑ "Heinz UK and Ireland". Archived from the original on 27 December 2012. Retrieved 11 February 2013.
  11. ↑ "ASA Bans Heinz Beans Cansong Ad". The Guardian. 23 November 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
  12. ↑ Mendis, Gita (13 August 2002). "Canned food". Evening Standard. London, England. p. 88.
  13. ↑ Hickman, Martin (31 March 2010). "Revealed: the nasty secret in your kitchen cupboard". The Independent. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  14. ↑ "Friends of the Earth: Archived press release: Hormone disruptor found in can linings". Foe.co.uk. Retrieved 12 November 2012.
  15. ↑ Hickman, Martin (1 April 2010). "Revealed: the nasty secret in your kitchen cupboard – News – Food & Drink". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 May 2022. Retrieved 12 November 2012.
  16. ↑ bundykim. "H. J. Heinz Company". Mahalo.com. Retrieved 12 November 2012.
  17. ↑ "HeinzUK Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
  18. ↑ "British Style Beans In Tomato Sauce". Heinz. Retrieved 21 July 2026.
  19. ↑ "Products - Heinz® Canada". Heinz. Retrieved 21 July 2026.
  20. ↑ "Heinz Beanz Canned Baked Beans In Tomato Sauce 300g | Woolworths". Woolworths. Archived from the original on 21 May 2026. Retrieved 21 July 2026.
  21. ↑ "Heinz - Baked Beans". www.saveonfoods.com. Retrieved 21 July 2026.
  22. ↑ "Heinz Baked Beans English Recipe Can 420g". SmartfoxNZ. Retrieved 21 July 2026.
  23. ↑ "Heinz Baked Beans in Tomato Sauce | NTUC FairPrice". NTUC FairPrice. Retrieved 21 July 2026.
  24. ↑ Presenters: Jimmy Doherty (3 November 2010). "Second Helpings". Jimmy's Food Factory. Season 2. Episode 1. BBC.
  25. ↑ Coles, Jonathan (4 September 2019). "Man 'annoyed' to find ONE baked bean in Heinz tin bought from Tesco". Bristol Post. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  26. ↑ Noble, William (29 August 2019). "A Museum Dedicated To Baked Beans Is Coming To London This Month". Londonist. Retrieved 15 September 2019.
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