Company:Melitta

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Short description: German coffee company
Melitta Group
TypePrivate
IndustryRetail Coffee
Founded1908
HeadquartersMinden, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
ProductsCoffees, coffee filters, small appliance (coffee makers etc.)
Revenue1.325 billion € (2014)
Number of employees
3,736 (2014)
Websitewww.melitta-group.com
Melitta headquarters in Minden
A Melitta coffee filter, containing ground coffee, in a single cup brewing holder

Melitta (/məˈltə/) is a German company selling coffee, paper coffee filters, and coffee makers, part of the Melitta Group, which has branches in other countries. The company is headquartered in Minden, North Rhine-Westphalia.[1][2]

It is named after Melitta Bentz (1873–1950) who founded the company after she invented the drip brew paper coffee filter (German patent granted 8 July 1908). Bentz later ran the company as a family business.[3]

History

This Melitta teapot was the model for the Utah teapot 3D rendering, a ubiquitous object in early computer graphics research

In 1908, Melitta Bentz, a 35-year-old woman from Dresden, Germany, invented the first coffee filter, receiving a patent registration for her "Filter Top Device lined with Filter Paper" from the Patent Office in Berlin on 8 July. She founded the company bearing her name the same year.[4][5][6]

In the 1930s, Melitta revised the original filter, tapering it into the shape of a cone and adding ribs. This created a larger filtration area, allowing for improved extraction of the ground coffee. In 1936, the widely recognised cone-shaped filter paper that fit inside the tapered filter top was introduced. The '102' became the most popular.[7]

In 1951/1952 and 1957/1958, the Porta-Keramikwerke J. Brauers in Barkhausen at Porta Westfalica, Germany produced ceramic filters for Melitta.[8] Langenthal Porzellan (de) once also produced porcelain filters for Melitta.[9] Friesland Porzellan (de), founded in 1952/1953 as part of the German Melitta group,[6] and independent since 1991/1995, produced Melitta porcelain filters up to 2018. Since then, they continue to sell these filters under their own Friesland label,[10] whereas Melitta itself switched to produce these filters in China.

Melitta continued to develop new techniques to improve the shape, performance, material and production process of its filter systems. In 1989, Natural Brown coffee filters made from unbleached pulp were introduced, which kept unwanted by-products from leaching into the environment.[11] In 1992 Melitta developed an oxygen-bleaching process to produce white paper without chlorine. In 1997, Melitta developed a filter with Flavor Pores, microfine perforations that filter out unwanted sediment, particles and oils[clarification needed]. In 2002 Melitta added a second safety crimp to increase strength and durability. In 2007 bamboo Filters were introduced and the Flavor Pores filter was improved.

(As of 2015) Melitta Group KG employed 3,300 people.[12]

In the 2019 financial year, the group's turnover increased by 10 percent to almost 1.7 billion euros.[13] The number of employees grew to 5654.[14]

In April 2020, Melitta announced that the company would be manufacturing nose and face masks as part of the COVID-19 pandemic. The masks consist of a three-layer fleece and are produced worldwide. Melitta donates the first million masks to healthcare facilities.[15]

Melitta USA

Melitta USA, headquartered in Clearwater, Florida, is part of the privately held Melitta Group of Minden, Germany.[1] Melitta USA is responsible for the sales and marketing of Melitta coffee filters, coffee, and non electric coffee systems in the USA.

Melitta USA's coffee filters are manufactured in Clearwater, Florida, and the company has a coffee roasting operation in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. The company Web site said in 2018 that it had been roasting coffee in Cherry Hill for more than 50 years.[16]

See also

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Walsh, Alex (25 March 2010). "Filter Family" (in en). https://www.businessobserverfl.com/article/filter-family. 
  2. "Service addresses ." Melitta. Retrieved on August 12, 2009.
  3. Moses, Claire (5 September 2018). "Overlooked No More: Melitta Bentz, Who Invented the Coffee Filter". https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/05/obituaries/melitta-bentz-overlooked.html. 
  4. Melitta History , Melitta.com
  5. "Total banal - genial!". Spiegel Online. 29 May 2008. http://www.spiegel.de/einestages/alltagserfindungen-a-947032.html. 
  6. 6.0 6.1 Siems, Maren, ed (2015) (in de). Melitta und Friesland Porzellan - 60 Jahre Keramikherstellung in Varel. Schlossmuseum Jever (de). Jever Heft 33 (1 ed.). Oldenburg, Germany: Isensee Verlag (de). Begleitkatalog zur Ausstellung: Jeverland - in Ton gebrannt. ISBN 978-3-7308-1177-1.  (48 pages)
  7. "Diese 15 Zahlen haben eine Geschichte: Kaffeefilter 102". BILD.de. 25 May 2015. http://www.bild.de/ratgeber/2015/ratgeber/zahlen-mit-geschichte-allgemein-41043414.bild.html. 
  8. "Melitta-Filter: Wesentlicher Unterschied" (in de). Der Spiegel 1962 (49). 1962-12-04. https://www.spiegel.de/politik/wesentlicher-unterschied-a-ec97a12b-0002-0001-0000-000045125110. 
  9. "Melitta Kaffeefilter von Langenthal Porzellan" (in de). 2023. https://kaffeefilter.webfenster.ch/Melittafilter%20von%20Langenthal%20Porzellan/index.html. 
  10. "Vom "Melitta" Kaffeefilter zum "Friesland" Kaffeefilter" (in de). Friesland Versand GmbH. 2018-06-26. https://frieslandversand.de/inspirationen/kaffeegenuss/vom-melitta-kaffeefilter-zum-friesland-kaffeefilter. 
  11. Jolly, R. D.; Thompson, K. G.; Winchester, B. G. (1975). "Bovine mannosidosis--a model lysosomal storage disease". Birth Defects Original Article Series 11 (6): 273–278. ISSN 0547-6844. PMID 100. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/100. 
  12. "10 everyday things invented in Germany #5: The coffee filter". Deutsche Welle. 15 July 2015. http://www.dw.com/en/10-everyday-things-invented-in-germany/g-18582961.  (Select 5th item)
  13. "Melitta Geschäftsbericht 2019 - Home" (in de-DE). https://report.melitta-group.com/geschaeftsbericht-2019/. 
  14. Hinweis in: Westfalenpost vom 18. August 2020, Seite Wirtschaft.
  15. "Melitta stellt ab sofort Millionen Atemmasken her - Melitta Corporate Site". 2020-04-25. https://www.melitta-group.com/de/Melitta-stellt-ab-sofort-Millionen-Atemmasken-her-3659.html/. 
  16. "Company Information". https://www.melitta.com/en/Company-Information-636,615.html. 

Further reading

  • Melitta Unternehmensgruppe, ed (2008). written at Minden, Germany (in de). 100 Jahre Melitta - Geschichte eines Markenunternehmens (1 ed.). Cologne, Germany: Geschichtsbüro Verlag / Geschichtsbüro Reder, Roeseling & Prüfer GbR. ISBN 978-3-940371-12-6.  (2+140+2 pages) (NB. There is also a French translation named 100 années Melitta - L'histoire d'une marque. Reportedly, English and Brazilian translations exist as well.)

External links