Thor Bjørklund

Last updated
Thor Bjørklund
Born(1889-10-30)30 October 1889
Died8 December 1975(1975-12-08) (aged 86)
Nationality Norwegian
Occupation(s) Inventor, businessman
Ostehovel Osthyvel 20050723 001.jpg
Ostehøvel

Thor Bjørklund (30 October 1889 8 December 1975) was a Norwegian inventor and businessman. He is best known as the inventor of Ostehøvel, a popular cheese slicer which developed into an important Norwegian export product. [1] [2] [3]

Thor Bjørklund was born in Lillehammer, Oppland, Norway. He was apprenticed as a cabinet maker. He also attended the Arts and Crafts School in Oslo. He was employed for some time as a master carpenter. He began to experiment with a carpenter's plane in the hope that he could create something similar for use in the kitchen. He made cheese slicers in his workshop, and on 27 February 1925 he patented the model of cheese slicer which is today found in many households in Nordic countries. [4] [5] and also particularly in the Netherlands. [6]

In 1927, he started the firm known today as Thor Bjørklund & Sønner AS. The company still produces cheese slicers in Lillehammer, and has operated since 17 November 2009 as a subsidiary of Gudbrandsdal Industrier AS. [7] [8]

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References

  1. "Thor Bjørklund". Norsk biografisk leksikon. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  2. About Us: History (Thor Bjørklund & Sønner AS)
  3. Mats Linder. "Ostehøvel". Store norske leksikon. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  4. The Cheese Slicer – A Norwegian Icon celebrates its 80th birthday (Nortrade, Norway's official trade portal)
  5. "The History of the Cheese Slicer". inventors.about.com. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  6. De kaasschaaf, Historisch Kader, 15 januari 2016.
  7. Thor Bjørklund: Cheese Slicer (Tasteful Inventions)
  8. "Bjørklund". Gudbrandsdal Industrier AS. Retrieved December 15, 2016.