Crate Label, Hot Brand California Vegetables, Western Packaging CA, 7" Vintage, 1950's

Before supermarkets. Before plastic wrap. Before everything was the same everywhere — there were crate labels.

This is an original California vegetable crate label — a 1950s lithograph produced for the Western Packing Co. of Guadalupe, California. It has never been used. Never folded. Never attached to a crate. It is New Old Stock in excellent condition, found in the original unused factory stock.

The label is extraordinary. Two cowboys work together to brand a steer — one holding firm, one with the iron, a third tending the fire in the background. Behind them, a snow-capped mountain range fills the horizon. The colors are vivid, the scene immediate and alive. This is the smaller version of the Hot Brand label at 7.0 by 5.25 inches — tight and punchy, every inch of it charged with energy. The lithographer is unattributed, but the craft speaks for itself.

Frame it as Western or ranch decor, display it in a collection, or use it in a craft or decoupage project — framing is recommended to maintain this condition. At 7.0 by 5.25 inches it fits a standard 8x6 frame beautifully. A larger 10x7 version is also available in our shop. Two available.

A wonderful gift for a Western enthusiast, a ranch decor collector, a vintage label collector, or anyone who appreciates the art of the American West rendered in lithographic ink.

A note on crate label collecting: Original lithographic crate labels from this era are increasingly scarce. NOS examples like this one — never used, never folded, in original unused condition — represent the best of what survives. Collectors prize them for their graphic quality and the window they open onto a vanished chapter of American agricultural and commercial history.

• Brand: Hot Brand / Western Packing Co., Guadalupe, California
• Type: Vegetable crate label
• Made in: USA
• Dated: circa 1950s
• Dimensions: 7.0" wide | 5.25" tall
• Condition: New Old Stock (NOS) — unused, excellent condition. Age-appropriate yellowing on the reverse only. Please review all photos carefully — we cannot accept returns.
• Framing: Fits a standard 8x6 frame — ready to display