British logo

From a traditional roast with all the trimmings to fish and chips from the local chippy, Britain is proud of its food. The nation is also known for some pretty famous food brands too. Here you can learn the iconic food logos that Britain would be lost without.

1. Lyles

Your porridge would be incomplete without the nation’s favourite syrup. The company’s founder, Abram Lyle, first produced this golden syrup back in 1881 in a sugar refinery on the Thames.

Lyle started selling the syrup, which he called ‘Goldie’, from wooden casks and shortly after there was a growing demand for the golden syrup, hence the birth of the green and gold tin we Brits know and love.

The tin’s logo portrays a dead lion surrounded by bees, a story taken from the Bible’s Old Testament. While this might seem an unusual logo, there’s no doubt that it’s a truly iconic food logo in Britain.

2. Marmite

Whether you love it or hate it, the iconic yeast extract is practically synonymous with Britain. While the product itself is British, the word ‘marmite’ is actually French for ‘cooking pot’. This explains why there is an image of a covered earthenware pot on the front of the jar.

While Marmite was originally supplied in earthenware pots, it has been sold in the distinctive bulbous jars, complete with a red and yellow label, since the 1920s.

It’s been over a decade. Let’s see if I still like this stuff. Someone send me #twiglets #marmite

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3. HP Sauce

The original recipe for HP Sauce was invented and developed by Frederick Gibson Garton, a grocer from Nottingham, back in 1899. Garton sold the recipe for £150 to Edwin Samson Moore, founder of the Midlands Vinegar Company, who launched the sauce as ‘HP’.

‘HP’ stands for Houses of Parliament and it was rumoured that politicans used this condiment here at the turn of the 20th century. Although the sauce is now produced in the Netherlands, the infamous logo is still made up of the Union Jack’s colours along with an illustration of the London landmark, the Houses of Parliament.

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4. Cadbury

Cadbury is the second largest confectionary company in the world. While it was established in 1884, the Cadbury script logo we know and love didn’t appear until 1921, when it was used to adorn the sides of the company’s transport fleet.

In 1928, the iconic picture of milk pouring into the chocolate bar was used alongside the slogan ‘glass and a half of full cream milk in every half pound’. This motto became famous yet is no longer used for Cadbury, however, the symbol of pouring milk still appears on bars today.

While Cadbury was sold to American brand Kraft, now known as Mondelēz International, Cadbury is and always will remain an iconic British brand.

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5. Fox’s Biscuits

A cup of tea is only complete when you’ve got a biscuit to go with it and when you’ve got a Fox’s biscuit, even better. The company was founded in 1853, by you guessed it: the Fox family, in a small Victorian bakery in West Yorkshire and is now one of the UK’s leading biscuit brands.

Vinnie, a cross between a dog and a panda, was created in 2008 for an ad campaign and the animated ‘Chief Biscwit Officer’ became a loveable ambassador for Fox’s. The logo is simple but effective and incorporates the words ‘more yum per crumb’, an approach that Fox’s is proud of.


There you have it, five of Britain’s most iconic food logos. If you’re looking for tips on how to design your own food packaging or logo, then put the kettle on and have a look at our blogs below.

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