Gerber Photo Contest Winner Ushers Brand Into New Generation

After over eighty years, Gerber has finally chosen a new advertising face for its brand...well, sort of. This year, Gerber searched for its brand new little star via a photo contest that attracted over 308,000 photo entries. Judges spent some time looking through all of the photos of smiling faces in order to determine which baby fit the brand best, but today, Gerber announced the winner is eight-month-old Mary Jane Montoya.

Back in 1928, Gerber used photos of Anne Turner Cook as the company’s trademark symbol. Her baby image—the woman is now 85—has appeared on millions of company products over the last several decades. While Gerber ran the photo contest via its Facebook page with the hopes of finding a child whose picture showed “visual appeal, expressiveness and consistency with Geber’s heritage,” little Miss Montoya will not take over the iconic brand's packaging photos.

However, Sara Montoya, Mary Jane’s mother, will win $50,000 as the photo prize winner. Baby Mary Jane will also get the opportunity to appear in advertising for the Gerber Company. The Fresno family says they hope to put the winnings into an account to later fund Mary Jane’s education. This morning, the Montoya family headed to Today, where they met Cook and shared their respective stories on Tuesday. Although I’m not certain any baby can ever beat out the rosy-cheeked, decades-old photo of Cook, I’m pretty sure the Montoya family is happy with the advertising win.

photo credit @Gerber