Did you enjoy a nice cup of coffee this morning, without any grounds? You might want to thank Melitta Bentz, the inventor of the coffee filter, for that.
Melitta Bentz
Melitta Bentz was born on January 31st, 1873 in Dresden. The housewife was getting tired of the grounds in her coffee and looked for a way to brew coffee without having to deal with the Kaffeesatz (dregs) or having to continuously clean the linen filters. She started experimenting using the Löschpapier (blotting paper) of her school-aged son and a brass pot she punctured with a nail.
Patent and Company
The less bitter coffee was met with great enthusiasm and Bentz had her invention patented in 1908. A couple months later, on December 15th, 1908, she founded the company under the name “M. Bentz” with 73 Pfennig capital. Her first employees were her husband Hugo and the sons, Willy and Horst.
They worked out of their home and were able to commission a tinsmith after their product proved an early success. The coffee filter also won gold and silver medals at the International Hygiene Exhibition in Dresden in 1911 and at the Saxon Innkeepers’ Association.
Lasting Success
After some hard times during World War I (1914-1918), where her husband was at the front and she was producing cartons, the business flourished in the 1920s. The family and company had to move several times to accommodate the increased production. In 1929, the company moved to Minden in North Rhine Westphalia where it is still located.
In 1937, the company patented its “Filterpapiereinsatz für Kaffeeaufbrühfilter und dgl.” (filter paper inset for coffee drippers and similar) which had the typical cone shape that you still see today. You can take a look at the original document here.
Melitta Bentz died on June 29th, 1950 in Holzhausen near Minden.
The company “Melitta” is still around today, and the name Melitta has been associated with coffee filters for over 100 years.
Great post!