
Canned soup is soup that comes packaged in a can. It can be condensed, in which case it is prepared by adding water (or sometimes milk), or it can be ready-to-eat, meaning that it only needs to be warmed. Canned soup can be prepared by heating in a pan or in the microwave. Campbell's is a producer of canned soup. The soups are a convenience product that make quick, easy meals in minutes without a lot of work in the kitchen. They are also often used as a simple base for homemade soups, with the consumer adding anything from a few vegetables to eggs, cream and pasta.Condensing soup allowed the soup to be packed into a smaller can and sold at lower prices than other canned soups. The soup is usually doubled in volume by adding "a can full" of water or milk (about 10 ounces). These soups seemed a godsend to working mothers, as soup often took all day to prepare from scratch. Vegetable and tomato soups were among the most popular early on. Campbell's also introduced a soup called Chicken Soup with Noodles, a product that they were about to discontinue. A last ditch effort was made to revive the soup by advertising it on the Amos and Andy show. The actors pitching the soup repeatedly mispronounced the name as "Chicken Noodle Soup". The company was inundated with requests for information on where to buy Chicken Noodle Soup. Campbell's wisely changed the soup's name and it quickly became the most popular canned soup sold.In recent years, the canned soup market has exploded with so-called "ready-to-eat" soups, which require no additional water to make. As of 2006, Campbells has two varieties of ready to eat soups, "Campbell's Selects" and "Chunky," which are offered in "Regular" and "Healthy Requests"