Here’s Why Campbell’s Soup Cans Have a Medal on the Label

Campbell’s soup is one of those pantry staples that most of us grew up with. Whether you were keen on Chicken & Stars on a cold day or Tomato paired with an ooey, gooey grilled cheese, that red and white can was always ready to become a warm bowl of comfort. Yet despite seeing a Campbell’s soup can nearly every time you opened the cupboard, you may have overlooked a key element sitting front and center on the label: a bronze medal.

Go ahead, take a look if you have a Campbell’s condensed soup can in your kitchen right now. (Let’s be honest, you probably do.) There it is, smack dab in the middle of the can, bridging the red and white portions of the label. Now that you’re aware of it, you can’t unsee it, right?

But why is that medal there? And has it always been part of the Campbell’s label? We asked Josh Bentley, an associate professor of strategic communication at Texas Christian University, to help us get the full picture of the Campbell’s label and that mysterious medal. Interested in the history of this delicious slice—er, bowl—of Americana? Grab a hot cup of soup, settle in and keep reading.

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Why is there a medallion in the center of the Campbell’s soup label?

The origin of the medallion on the Campbell’s soup label dates back to the 1900 Paris Exposition, an event that brought countries around the world together to showcase their achievements. But the can didn’t have the medal at first.

“As the story goes, a company executive recommended the red and white color scheme in 1898 after seeing the uniforms of the Cornell University football team,” Bentley says. “Then, Campbell’s soup won a bronze medal at the 1900 Paris Exposition.” The company knew it needed to commemorate the prize, and a medallion, designed by French sculptor and medalist Jules Clément Chaplain, seemed like a natural choice.

A major reason Campbell’s soup earned the award was its condensed formula, which was revolutionary for preserving its ingredients while providing an affordable meal option. “So the gold medallion on the label stands for product excellence,” Bentley says.

Which Campbell’s soups have the medal?

All of Campbell’s condensed soups have the medal on the label—except for its Cheddar Cheese soup, which has a graphic depicting a hunk of cheese instead. You also won’t find it on Campbell’s Chunky, Slow Kettle or Homestyle soups. Pacific Foods soups, which joined the Campbell’s family in 2017, do not have the medal either. That’s likely because these soups aren’t condensed, and the medal was given for that product innovation.

Why has Campbell’s kept the medal on the label all these years?

In a word: trust. In the era before consumer protection laws, Bentley says brands needed ways to make customers trust their products.

“Trademarks, such as names and logos, help us identify and recognize brands,” he says. So-called trade dress, aka the look and feel of a product, including the packaging, can do the same thing. “It communicates to consumers about where products come from.”

Building trust with a brand really comes down to consistency. Once a company gets someone to try its product, that’s the big first step. If the experience is good, people are likely to come back—and that’s when the brand starts to mean something. It becomes a kind of promise.

“We need to remember that Campbell’s soup is more than just a food product,” Bentley says. “It’s tied to memories of childhood for many people. It takes them back to a simpler time in their lives when they were with people they loved.” Even Andy Warhol, the artist who made Campbell’s soup cans even more famous, said he had soup for lunch every day for 20 years, Bentley says.

How has the iconic Campbell’s soup label changed over the years?

There’s perhaps no grocery item in American history as recognizable as the Campbell’s soup can (well, maybe a bottle of Coca-Cola), but the design has gone through a few changes since the first can rolled off the production line in the late 19th century. Here are the highlights:

• 1895: The first Campbell’s soup, Beefsteak Tomato, featured an ornate gold script and a black-and-white illustration with a bright red tomato in the center of it. This soup was ready-to-eat, not condensed.
• 1897: When the company started condensing its products, the label changed again to fit the smaller can. That year, the label was black on top and orange on the bottom, with the same black-and-white illustration and red tomato.
• 1898: After that Cornell football game in 1898, the label changed again, this time to the familiar red and white. It featured a round insignia with a double-headed eagle and crown.
• 1900: Once the company won the bronze medal for its condensed-soup invention, it added the medallion to the can—and it has remained largely unchanged for more than 125 years.
• 2012: For the 50th anniversary of Andy Warhol’s pop-art Campbell’s soup can series, Campbell’s released cans featuring vibrant color pairings like pink and teal, blue and green, white and yellow, and red and purple.

Over the years, Campbell’s has made some minor tweaks to the font and added small images that depict the condensed soup flavor. For example, there’s an image of a tomato on the Tomato Soup cans and an image of diced chicken, noodles and carrots on the Chicken Noodle Soup can.

But other than that? “The classic condensed soup line—the one Campbell’s is best known for—has stayed pretty consistent over the years,” Bentley says. “It was big news when the company made small changes to its label in 2021. But still, the classic red and while color scheme is there. The gold medallion is there. The typeface has been updated a little, but it still gives the same vibe.”

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About the experts Josh Bentley is an associate professor of strategic communication at Texas Christian University. He’s a member of the National Communication Association and previously worked as an assistant professor at the University of New Mexico. His areas of focus include public relations, law and crisis communication, among others.

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Sources:

• Josh Bentley, associate professor of strategic communication at Texas Christian University; interviewed, January 2026
• The Campbell’s Company: “Campbell’s History”
• Victoria and Albert Museum: “Exposition Universelle Internationale, Paris, 1900 – Medal”

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