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'{{Infobox person | name = Frank Daniel Gerber | occupation = Baby food manufacturer | image = | caption = | birth_date = {{birth date|1873|7|12|mf=y}} | birth_place = [[Douglas, Michigan]] | nationality = American | spouse= Pauline Dora Platt | death_date = {{death date and age|1952|10|7|1873|7|12|mf=y}} | death_place = [[Fremont, Michigan]] | parents = Joseph Daniel Gerber <br /> Agnes Mayer }} '''Frank Daniel Gerber''' (July 12, 1873 - October 7, 1952) was an American manufacturer of baby food.<ref name ="Ingham443">Ingham, p. 443-445</ref> ==Early life== Gerber was born in the town of [[Douglas, Michigan|Douglas]] in [[Allegan County, Michigan]], in 1873. He graduated from Fremont High School of Western Michigan in 1887. He attended Valparaiso Normal School in [[Valparaiso, Indiana]], for one year, to learn to become a teacher.<ref name ="Ingham443"/> Gerber’s father owned a tannery and Gerber joined his father’s firm when he was sixteen. Gerber became a partner of the firm within five years and managed it until it closed in 1905.<ref name ="Ingham443"/> ==Career== Gerber founded Fremont Canning Company in 1901 with his father to market local produce for the farmers. They [[canning|canned]] the farmers' peas, beans, and fruits. This company was the basis of the [[baby food]] industry.<ref>Ingham, p. 443 ''In 1901 he had helped found the Fremont Canning Company.''</ref> Gerber became president of Fremont Canning Company in 1917 when his father died.<ref>Ingham, p. 443 ''When his father died in 1917, he succeeded him as president.</ref> This first year as president of the firm, Gerber had sales that exceeded one million dollars. Gerber expanded the facilities for year-round production in 1914-1915. Before the production was seasonal. Gerber's son [[Daniel Frank Gerber|Daniel]] joined the company in 1920. He became assistant general manager of the canning company in 1926.<ref name ="Ingham443"/> Gerber had a granddaughter named [[Sally Gerber|Sally]], born in 1927, who was sickly. Her mother Dorothy, wife of Daniel, would make by hand a diet of strained fruits and vegetables for her as a [[pediatrician]] had recommended. After getting tired of this she suggested to her husband that if his company could make tomato puree perhaps they could make strained peas.<ref>{{cite news|url= https://www.nytimes.com/1988/09/15/obituaries/dorothy-s-gerber-84-developed-baby-food.html|title=Dorothy S. Gerber, 84; Developed Baby Food |work= The New York Times|date=15 September 1988 |accessdate=August 26, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Freeman, William|title=News of the Advertising and Marketing Fields|url=https://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F7091FFC395E107B93CAA8178CD85F408585F9|date=July 18, 1954|work=The New York Times|accessdate=2008-11-29}}</ref> Daniel then suggested to his father that they should look into making baby food.<ref name = "Shapiro28">Shapiro, p. 28</ref> Gerber experimented with test batches of strained baby food on baby Sally and other babies in the summer of 1927. Gerber also researched marketing possibilities. Gerber began selling baby food through the canning company in 1928, using the "[[Gerber Baby]]" as their logo symbol. The baby food was sold at fifteen cents each, much less than similar foods which were purchased through drug stores for forty to sixty cents.<ref>{{cite news|url= https://www.nytimes.com/1988/09/15/obituaries/dorothy-s-gerber-84-developed-baby-food.html|title=Dorothy S. Gerber, 84; Developed Baby Food|work= The New York Times|date=15 September 1988 |accessdate=August 26, 2012}}</ref> Some twelve years later the baby food line was outselling the adult canned food products. The name was changed to [[Gerber Products Company]] in 1941,<ref name ="Ingham443"/> and in 1943 Gerber stopped making canned foods for adults. ==Later life== Gerber died in 1952 and the firm was taken over by his son, Daniel Frank Gerber.<ref name ="Ingham443"/> ==Further reading== * Ingham, John N., ''Biographical Dictionary of American Business Leaders: A-G'', Greenwood Press (1983); {{ISBN|0-3132390-7-X}} * Shapiro, Eileen C., ''Fad Surfing in the Boardroom: Managing in the Age of Instant Answers'', Basic Books (1996), {{ISBN|0-2014419-5-0}} * Obituary, ''New York Times'', October 8, 1952 ==References== {{reflist}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Gerber, Frank Daniel}} [[Category:1873 births]] [[Category:1952 deaths]] [[Category:People from Fremont, Michigan]] [[Category:People from Allegan County, Michigan]] [[Category:Businesspeople from Michigan]]'