industry. They launched a PR campaign to portray plastic dishes as giving off toxic fumes that would get into the food and poison people. They failed and had to launch light weight ceramic plates instead.
A little history:
Melamine, a plastic, is prized because it is lightweight, hard and resistant to water. It is also used as an ingredient to make other materials better. For example, wrinkle free clothes are made with fibers that have been coated with melamine which imparts a crease or wrinkle resistance.
The British line called Beetleware, made of urea plastic, a precursor to melamine, was the first plastic plate. Beetleware was promoted for use at picnics, because it was lightweight and reusable. There were problems with the material, because urea used wood as filler and wood absorbs water, ultimately damaging the plates after repeated washings.
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Plates from French Bull
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Plate from elsewares.com
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Plates from Thomas Paul
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The Ohio chemical company American Cyanamid first developed a commercially successful melamine in 1937, but it was soon rationed for wartime manufacture. During World War II the Navy sought unbreakable dishes for use on rough seas. Metal plates were used previously, but they would dent and were thermally conductive, which made the food get cold quickly. Enameled metal plates would dent and rust, contaminating food. Melamine plates provided the solution. These lightweight, break and shatter resistant dishes were not available to consumers until after the war. In 1944, American Cyanamid commissioned the influential designer Russell Wright to design the first prototypical line of dishes which were called Meladur. This line was intended to encourage other manufacturers to produce melamine products. It was successful, because just a year later there were 11 companies invested in melamine dishware production. The first well-known brands were Melmac or Boontonware.
Melamine was promoted as an affordable, colorful, easy to live with, and most of all fun product. This was in sharp contrast to the serious, heavy, precious and expensive earthenware or porcelain dish sets which were previously available. Melamine has not lost its fun, and today there are new designers taking advantage of the bright colors and affordable fashion the material provides.
Here are some dishes we love, click to view:
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