Archives Center, National Museum of American History P.O. Box 37012 Suite 1100, MRC 601 Washington, D.C. 20013-7012 [email protected]http://americanhistory.si.edu/archives Guide to the Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company Records NMAH.AC.1316 Alison Oswald 2017
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Guide to the Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company Recordssirismm.si.edu/EADpdfs/NMAH.AC.1316.pdfSummary: The collection documents Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company, a Portland, Oregon company
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Archives Center, National Museum of American HistoryP.O. Box 37012Suite 1100, MRC 601Washington, D.C. [email protected]://americanhistory.si.edu/archives
Guide to the Kubla KhanFrozen Food Company Records
Collection Overview ........................................................................................................ 1Administrative Information .............................................................................................. 1Arrangement..................................................................................................................... 3Scope and Contents........................................................................................................ 3Biographical / Historical.................................................................................................... 2Names and Subjects ...................................................................................................... 3Container Listing ............................................................................................................. 5
Series 1: Background and Biographical Materials, 1946 - 2005.............................. 5Series 2: Business Records, 1931 - 2006............................................................... 6Series 3: Advertising and Marketing Materials, 1956-[1995?]................................ 30Series 4: Federal Food Administration and United States Department of AgricultureMaterials, 1959 - 2003........................................................................................... 34Series 5: Food Industry Materials, 1949 - 2006..................................................... 36
Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company RecordsNMAH.AC.1316
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Collection Overview
Repository: Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Title: Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company Records
Identifier: NMAH.AC.1316
Date: 1931-2006
Extent: 20.5 Cubic feet
Creator: Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company (Portland, Oregon)Loy, Percy W.Wong, Robert
Language: English
Collection is in English.
Some materials in Chinese.
Summary: The collection documents Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company,a Portland, Oregon company that manufactures, packages anddistributes frozen Chinese food from 1950-present.
Administrative Information
Acquisition InformationCollection donated by Michael Loy and Daria Loy-Goto, 2013.
Processing InformationCollection processed by Alison Oswald, archivist, 2017.
Preferred CitationKubla Khan Frozen Food Company Records, 1931-2006, Archives Center, National Museumof American History.
RestrictionsCollection is open for research.
Social Security numbers are present and have been rendered unreadable and redacted.Researchers may use the photocopies in the collection. The remainder of the collection has norestrictions.
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Conditions Governing UseCollection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guaranteesconcerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Centercost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Biographical / Historical
Percy Wallace Loy (1920-2006) was born in Vancouver, Washington, to Kong (1867-1951) and Rose Loy(nee Fong), Chinese immigrants who were in the dairy business. Loy attended the Providence Academyin Portland, Oregon graduating in 1937. Loy enlisted in the Army (1943-1949) and became a navigator,bombardier, and pilot, serving during World War II. He retired as a lieutenant colonel, but was unable tofind work with an airline after the war. He and his brother-in-law, Robert Wong, started the Kubla KhanFood Company, selling frozen Chinese entrees at a time when frozen foods had not yet caught on and theinfrastructure to store, transport and distribute them didn't yet exist. The company popularized both frozenfoods and Chinese food in the Northwest region of the United States. He was very active in the frozenfoods industry in the Northwest, campaigning for the industry and working at convincing grocers of theirprofitability. He sold the manufacturing part of the company in the mid-2000s and died in 2006.
Though most food preservation practices (curing, smoking and canning) have their origins in Europe, thepractice of freezing foods for consumer use was, for the most part, started and developed in America.Even today, frozen convenience foods are considered an American oddity and are not widely embraced inother countries.
In the 1920s Clarence Birdseye experimented with freezing food in small quantities, enabling them toreach a lower temperature faster. In the decades that followed, Birdseye tested and developed betterpackaging and ways of packing food more tightly inside the packaging. However, consumers remainedskeptical about the safety and quality of this novelty, as were grocers about its profitability, in additionto concerns about the effects of the industrialization of food. It took about twenty more years to turnthis situation around and to resolve problems with distribution and transport. Birdseye had to take hugerisks to get there, beginning with enlisting the aid of a small number of stores, to which he supplied freefreezers containing a variety of frozen foods sold on consignment, and hiring demonstrators to convinceconsumers that frozen foods were the future. Very slowly, frozen foods began to catch on. It wasn't untilthe 1950s, when frozen TV dinners were introduced, that frozen foods became popular with consumers.
Against this background, Percy Loy and Robert Wong started Kubla Khan in 1950 in the basement of aChinese restaurant in Portland. Wong died a few years after the company was started. He supported hisfamily by selling insurance for a short while, and then opened a small Japanese restaurant, eventuallystarting the Kubla Khan Company as a sideline, when he saw a hole in the market for frozen foods, theconvenience of which he thought would appeal to consumers. He was active in getting freezers in storesthat had not had them before.
While they were not the first to offer frozen Chinese food—Breyer's Ice Cream had its "Golden Pagoda"brand including frozen chow mein and chop suey—Kubla Khan had little other competition at the time,and most stores stored their frozen products in their ice cream cases. The introduction and popularity ofTV dinners helped Kubla Khan's business thrive, as groceries added freezer cases to accommodate theTV dinners, and they now had space to add more frozen products. Kubla Khan kept up with the changingtechnology, but they held onto their cooking techniques, continuing to cook much of their food in woks orwith steam, eschewing the automated, large batch vat cooking that other makers used. Loy said that thisensured uniform heating and an authentic taste. Mr. Loy built some of the equipment himself, with frozenfood being so new that the machinery was not readily available in the Northwestern states. Kubla Khan
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exported its products to Asia, enabling the company to boast that it was so authentic it was served in theOrient. They also bottled their own sauces using their own recipes.
The Kubla Khan Company was not the largest Chinese food manufacturer, but it was a pioneer. Theyhelped popularize something previously considered foreign and exotic—Chinese food. They helpedpopularize frozen food, something taken for granted now with probably (an unscientific estimate) 10% ofthe space in most grocery stores being devoted to frozen food. They did this not only with their productsbut with Mr. Loy's activism in promoting frozen foods. La Choy, by comparison, did not start making frozenfoods until the 1960s.
Loy was a tireless activist in promoting frozen foods, campaigning for the industry and working atconvincing grocers of their profitability. His goals were building consumer trust and making Chinesefood accessible. He was also active in his community, trying to help other minorities start businesses. Astrong believer in giving back to his community, he helped several colleges (Lewis and Clark, WillametteUniversity and others) start up foreign exchange programs. He helped several former employees starttheir own businesses. He led the first trade delegation to China after Nixon's visit.
The Kubla Khan Company is still in business, but Mr. Loy sold the manufacturing part of the companyin the mid-2000s. Loy married Irene F. Lee in 1949. The couple had six children children, Martin (d.1958), David (d. 1965), Michael, Deborah, Marilyn, and Daria. Loy's daughter, Marilyn Loy now runs thecompany, which is limited to the import/export aspect.
Scope and Contents
The records of a Portland, Oregon company that made, packaged and distributed frozen Chinese food.The collection includes the incorporation papers of the business, correspondence, photographs, productpackaging, advertising and marketing materials, and business records.
Arrangement
The collection is divided into five series.
Series 1: Background and Biographical Materials, 1946-2005
Series 2: Business Records, 1931-2006
Series 3: Advertising, Packaging and Promotional Materials, 1956-[1995?]
Series 4: United States Department of Agriculture and Federal Food Administration Materials, 1959-2003
Series 5: Food Industry Materials, 1949-2006
Names and Subject Terms
This collection is indexed in the online catalog of the Smithsonian Institution under the following terms:
Subjects:
Cooking, Chinese
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Ethnic food industryFamily-owned business enterprisesFood -- OregonFood industry and trade -- OregonFrozen foods -- OregonRestaurants -- Oregonadvertising -- 1950-2000advertising -- Food
Series 1: Background and Biographical Materials Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company RecordsNMAH.AC.1316
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Container Listing
Series 1: Background and Biographical Materials, 1946 - 2005This series contains biographical materials primarily for Percy Loy, but also contains obituaries for PearlLoy Wong and Irene F. Loy
Box 1, Folder 1 Percy Loy resume, undated
Box 1, Folder 2 Obituaries, 2005, 1997
Box 1, Folder 3 Department of the Air Force, Reserve matters, 1968
Box 1, Folder 4 Genealogy, 2003
Box 1, Folder 5 Providence Academy Class of 1937 reunion list, 2004
Box 49, Folder 1 Certificates and awards, 1946 - 2000
Box 1, Folder 6 Name tags for Percy Loy, undated
Box 1, Folder 7 Willamette University , 2001 - 2005
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Series 2: Business Records Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company RecordsNMAH.AC.1316
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Series 2: Business Records , 1931 - 2006The business records comprise the largest of the series and consist of correspondence, newspaperclippings about the company and Percy Loy, licensing agreements, financial information, sales records,union documentation, customer information, price lists, and research about food and specifications forcertain food products.
Subseries 2.1: Correspondence, 1965 - 2003The correspondence is arranged chronologically and includes incoming and outgoing letters andinvitations. The correspondence relates to Kubla Khan's involvement in the Chinese community inPortland, company donations to community organizations, congratulatory letters to fellow businessmen,invitations to serve on community boards and customer complaints. There is correspondence withCongressman Ron Wyden (3rd District) and Senator Mark Hatfield about the food industry and itsrelationship to the Oregon economy.
Box 3, Folder 21 Newspaper clippings and articles, undated
Subseries 2.3: Corporate, 1951 - 2004The corporate subseries contains information about the company's incorporation, company identity(letterhead, business cards, and envelopes), license and building permits, financial and tax information,correspondence, and information about conducting trade with China and importing goods from China.
The corporate file consists of correspondence, applications for licenses, corporation power of attorney,and other legal documents about the company's founding in 1949. Also included is a 1967 Censusof Manufacturers for canned foods, Veteran's installment notes and certificates of eligibility (for bothRobert Wong and Percy Loy), Small Business Administration loan documents, and equipment leaseagreements.
Box 6, Folder 12 United States International Trade Commission, 1998 - 1999
Subseries 2.4: International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 305, 1950 - 1992This subseries contains information about Kubla Khan's employees' membership in Local Union No. 305,the Dairy, Bakery and Food Processors, Industrial Technical and Automotive Union. Included are medicalinsurance benefits, contribution rates to the Oregon Teamster Employers Trust, and agreements.
Subseries 2.11: Specifications for Food Products, 1976 - 2006The specifications contain documentation about food products used by Kubla Khan. The materialsconsist of memoranda, correspondence, faxes, laboratory results, evaluation data, US TreasuryDepartment, Bureau of Customs notice of refusal of admission for food products, and data sheetsdescribing the food items, its limits, chemical make-up, physical make-up, quantity per can or carton, andnutritional information. In some instances, product literature, product labels, news clippings, and articlesare included. Those products titled "IQF" refer to individually quick frozen. The materials are arrangedalphabetically by product name.
Box 38, Folder 17 World Canning Co., Ltd (Taiwan), 2002
Box 38, Folder 18 B & G product information sheets, Wright's natural hickory seasoning, liquidsmoke, undated
Box 41, Folder 20 Sour cherry juice concentrate, 1995
Box 41, Folder 21 Tomato products, 1988 - 1998
Box 41, Folder 22 Yellow papya puree, 2003
Box 41, Folder 23 Industrial and institutional food items, 1998
Box 42, Folder 1 IQF baby corn, 2005
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Box 42, Folder 2 IQF bamboo shoots, 2006
Box 42, Folder 3 IQF peapods, 2005
Box 42, Folder 4 Coconut powder milk, 2003 - 2005
Box 42, Folder 5 Kosher certificates, 1997 - 2004
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Series 3: Advertising and Marketing Materials Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company RecordsNMAH.AC.1316
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Series 3: Advertising and Marketing Materials, 1956-[1995?]This series contains advertisements, product packaging, labels for products, and photographs. Thephotographs are arranged chronologically and consist primarily of images of products, interior and exteriorwarehouse views, displays of Kubla Khan products in grocery stores, and outdoor billboards.
Subseries 3.1: Packaging, 1988 - 1988, undated
Box 43, Folder 2 Kubla Khan, fried rice, undated
Box 43, Folder 3 Kubla Khan, chicken chop suey, undatedImage(s)
Box 43, Folder 4 Kubla Khan, egg rolls with meat, undated
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Return to Table of Contents
Series 4: Federal Food Administration and United StatesDepartment of Agriculture Materials
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Series 4: Federal Food Administration and United States Department ofAgriculture Materials , 1959 - 2003This series consists of documentation about the regulation and policies concerning importing food.Included are Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act forms known as "continuing guaranty" ensuringthat deliveries for Kubla Khan are not adulterated or misbranded. There are some Federal and DrugAdministration reports related to food inspection of Kubla Khan products and documentation with theDepartment of Health and Human Services for exemptions from the nutrition labeling for certain KublaKhan products.
The United States Department of Agriculture materials consist of printed bulletins and memorandarelating to policies and regulations for food safety and inspections of food products and its operators andestablishments. Examples of wax overwrap labels used for food products and the associated applications,information about the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act, documentation about pesticides,inspection reports, process deficiency records, and import processes and licenses are included.
Box 44, Folder 10 Federal, Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act, 1972 - 2003
Box 44, Folder 11 Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act (continuing guarantees), 1991 - 2001
Box 44, Folder 12 Food and Drug Administration, 1959 - 1960
Box 44, Folder 13 Food and Drug Administration, Compliance Policy Guide (excerpt), 2001
Box 44, Folder 14 Food and Drug Administration/Department of Health and Human Services, foodlabeling , 1996 - 2001
Box 44, Folder 15 United States Department of Agriculture, regulations, 1953 - 1958
Box 44, Folder 16 United States Department of Agriculture, wax overwrap labels, 1958
Box 44, Folder 17 United States Department of Agriculture, dinner covers, wax overwrap labels,1957
Box 45, Folder 1 United States Department of Agriculture, sukiyaki dinner wax overwrap, 1959
Box 45, Folder 2 United States Department of Agriculture, memoranda, 1959 - 1962
Box 45, Folder 3 United States Department of Agriculture, poultry regulations, 1966 - 1968
Box 45, Folder 4 United States Department of Agriculture, inspection system guide, 1990 - 1990
Box 45, Folder 5 United States Department of Agriculture, import permit section, 1965 - 2003
Box 45, Folder 6 United States Department of Agriculture, label for pork fried rice, 1994
Box 45, Folder 7 United States Department of Agriculture, organisms, pesticides, and residues,1969 - 1994
Box 45, Folder 8 United States Department of Agriculture, import permits for plant products, 1989- 2002
Series 4: Federal Food Administration and United StatesDepartment of Agriculture Materials
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Box 45, Folder 9 United States Department of Agriculture, AGRIPAC labels, 1994 - 1994, 1985
Box 45, Folder 10 United States Department of Agriculture, application for labels for chicken friedrice, 1994
Box 45, Folder 11 United States Department of Agriculture, application for labels for potstickers,1991 - 1994
Box 45, Folder 12 United States Department of Agriculture, Perishable Agricultural CommoditiesAct, 2003 - 2004
Box 45, Folder 13 United States Department of Agriculture, process deficiency records, 1989 -1998
Return to Table of Contents
Series 5: Food Industry Materials Kubla Khan Frozen Food Company RecordsNMAH.AC.1316
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Series 5: Food Industry Materials, 1949 - 2006This series contains information related to the food industry broadly. Materials are arrangedchronologically and include product literature about packaging equipment, menu samples, publicationsabout food processes and the restaurant business, buying guides, directories. and consumer analysisdata compiled by the Seattle Times (1952 and 1954). Of note is the inclusion of the Cornell UniversitySchool of Hotel Administration, The Essentials of Good Table Service and Waitress Training Manual forthe Original Pancake House from 1953.
Box 46, Folder 1 Ajax Bolier, Inc., instructions for installation and maintenance, 1985