Royal Dansk

Why it is renowned

Royal Dansk is the butter cookie in the round royal-blue tin, and in the United States it is a common Christmas gift.¹ The tin, kept long after the cookies are gone for sewing things or recipes, has become a shared joke in the press and online.¹ Kelsen Group, which bakes it, says Royal Dansk leads the American market for Danish butter cookies, and that its cookies sell in more than 95 markets.²³ Kelsen is a supplier to the Royal Danish Court.⁴

The story

The first Royal Dansk cookies came out of the oven in Helsingør in 1966, packed in a blue tin to keep them fresh.⁵ The lid shows Hjemstavnsgaard, an old farmhouse on Funen.² In 1990 the company merged with the Danish biscuit maker Kjeldsen to form Kelsen, which Campbell bought in 2013 and Ferrero in 2019.¹ The cookies are still baked in Denmark, in two bakeries in Nørre Snede and Ribe that make more than 25,000 tonnes a year.⁵

What to know it by

• The blue tin1966Round resealable tin with Hjemstavnsgaard on the lid
• Vanilla RingWreath-shaped vanilla butter cookie
• PretzelPretzel-shaped butter cookie with fine sugar
• Five classic shapesPretzel, Vanilla Ring, Finnish Style, Country Style and Coconut