You’ve seen it. It’s the orange box. Specifically, the Arm and Hammer ad showing a box of baking soda tucked neatly into the back corner of a refrigerator. It feels like it's been there forever. Honestly, it basically has. This wasn't just some random marketing fluke; it was a desperate, genius pivot that changed how every single one of us interacts with household products today.
Church & Dwight, the parent company, didn't start out trying to sell you a "deodorizer." They were selling a leavening agent for biscuits. But by the late 1960s and early 1970s, people were buying way more pre-packaged bread. Sales for baking soda were tanking because, well, nobody was actually baking at home anymore. They had to find a way to make you buy more of the white powder without you having to bake a single muffin.
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Enter the most successful "use-case expansion" in the history of American business.
The Pivot: From Biscuits to Bad Smells
In 1972, the brand launched a massive Arm and Hammer ad campaign that didn't mention cake. Not once. Instead, they told America that their refrigerators smelled like old onions and expired milk. They suggested that if you opened a box and stuck it in the fridge, the sodium bicarbonate would literally pull the odors out of the air. It was brilliant. It was simple.
It also meant you were "using" the product 24/7 without doing any work.
Before this, a box of baking soda might sit in a pantry for three years. After this campaign? You were supposed to replace it every 30 days. Think about that for a second. They increased the consumption rate of a staple product by about 1,200% just by changing the instructions on the back of the box.
The strategy was so effective that it became a cultural shorthand. If you see a fridge in a movie or a sitcom, there’s a 90% chance there’s an orange box in the door. It became an "invisible" necessity.
Why the "Deodorizing" Science Actually Works
Look, sodium bicarbonate ($NaHCO_{3}$) isn't magic, but it is a pretty cool chemical buffer. Most smells in your kitchen are either highly acidic (like sour milk) or highly basic (like rotten fish). Because baking soda is amphoteric, it can react with both types of molecules to neutralize them.
You aren't just "masking" the smell with perfume. You're actually destroying the odor molecules.
However—and this is a big however—the classic Arm and Hammer ad might have slightly oversold the "open box" method's efficiency. Science shows that a small opening at the top of a box doesn't provide enough surface area to catch every stray molecule floating around a four-foot-tall appliance. This is why the company later introduced the "Flow-Through" package with mesh sides. They realized that to keep the promise made in the ads, they needed more air-to-soda contact.
Modern Iterations and the "Clean" Aesthetic
Fast forward to 2026, and the marketing has shifted again. Now, it's not just about the fridge. You see it in laundry detergent, toothpaste, and even cat litter.
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The brand has leaned heavily into the "purity" trend. In a world full of complex chemicals and unpronounceable ingredients, "Baking Soda" sounds safe. It sounds like something your grandma used. The ads today focus on being "The Standard of Purity." They’ve successfully moved from a kitchen staple to a lifestyle brand that promises a chemical-free clean, even though it is, technically, a chemical.
- Laundry: They’ve positioned the soda as a "booster" to get out the stink of gym clothes.
- Oral Care: They use the "grit" factor to prove it’s scrubbing your teeth better than the gel stuff.
- Pet Care: It’s the ultimate "I have three cats but don't want my house to smell like it" solution.
What Most People Get Wrong About Using It
I see people all the time pouring a whole box down the drain with vinegar and filming the fizz for TikTok. It looks cool. It’s satisfying. But here’s the truth: it’s mostly useless for clogs. Vinegar is an acid, and baking soda is a base. When you mix them, they neutralize each other into salty water and $CO_{2}$ gas.
That "volcano" reaction doesn't actually eat through grease.
If you want to follow the advice from a real Arm and Hammer ad regarding drains, you’re supposed to use the baking soda alone or with hot water to scrub the sides of the pipe, not rely on a chemical explosion. The marketing focuses on the deodorizing power, not the plumbing prowess.
Actionable Steps for Your Household
If you want to actually get the most out of this product based on its long history of marketing promises, stop just leaving a box in the fridge for a year. It stops working after a few weeks once the surface layer is "saturated" with odors.
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- Maximize Surface Area: Don't just open the little tab. Pour the soda into a wide, shallow bowl if you really want to kill a smell in the fridge. More surface area equals more odor absorption.
- The "Dry" Scrub: Use it on stainless steel sinks. It’s abrasive enough to remove coffee stains but soft enough that it won't scratch the metal.
- Deodorize the Trash: Sprinkle a layer at the very bottom of the plastic bin before you put the bag in. It catches the leaks and the smells before they hit the air.
- Mattress Refresh: Every few months, sift a light layer over your bare mattress, let it sit for an hour, and vacuum it up. It pulls out skin oils and sweat smells that a sheet can't stop.
The genius of the Arm and Hammer story isn't just the white powder inside the box. It’s the way they convinced us that a product meant for biscuits was actually the secret to a clean-smelling life. They didn't just sell a product; they sold a habit. And honestly? It’s a habit that actually works, as long as you understand the chemistry behind the "fizz."