Esskay Meats Esskay Meats is a Baltimore - based meat company , specializing in hot dogs , sausages , and ham . The company has its roots in a 1919 merger between the separate meatpacking concerns of William Schluderberg and Thomas J . Kurdle . The resulting entity was initially known as the Schluderberg - Kurdle Co . , but soon became popularly known as " Esskay " , based on the phonetic pronunciation of the founders ' paired initials . Esskay , which as late as 1966 was still slaughtering its own cattle , promoted its products through the slogan " Taste the difference Ka - wality makes ! " The company also sought out unique approaches to advertising , most notably utilizing the talents of two burgeoning satirists / pitchmen , Jim Henson and Stan Freberg . Sponsorship . As the original sponsor for " Sam and Friends " , Esskay served as the launching pad for Henson ' s experiments in using puppets and sharp humor to sell products . Each " Sam and Friends " episode was closed by a commercial skit for Esskay Meats . The relationship between Esskay and Henson continued through the 1960s , with human spokesperson Pat Mackenzie co - starring with the Muppets . More than 30 Esskay spots were produced between 1959 and 1963 , featuring Kermit , Harry the Hipster , Sneegle , King Goshposh , Rowlf , Moldy Hay and Yorick . Commercial Descriptions . One Esskay commercial featured Rowlf at the helm of an Esskay Luncheon Meat machine . With the pull of a lever , Rowlf could have the machine roll off a new Esskay meat product in seconds . Pat Mackenzie expounded on the benefits of Esskay ' s victuals , while Rowlf observed that " Esskay Meats are made up to a standard , not down to a price " . Towards the end of the commercial , Rowlf allowed Pat to pull the lever herself , prompting her to " hit the jackpot " by creating an Esskay Luncheon Meats bonanza platter . In another commercial with Pat , Kermit sat at the breakfast table . He explained how great it would be if Esskay could combine the great tastes of their sausage and bacon into one product . Pat lightened Kermit ' s morning by serving him new Esskay Pork & Bacon Sausage . Kermit closed the commercial by planting a kiss on the tube of processed sausage . Kermit appeared alongside Pat , where he details a nasty character who hates Esskay bacon . He proceeds to give a patriotic ramble about the company . In another ad , Kermit and Harry the Hipster perform a scat as Pat does her sales pitch . King Goshposh made an early appearance in an Esskay Meats commercial . In a spot for Esskay brand ham , the monarch endorses Esskay because he loves to collect the gold foil wrapping . In May 2016 , Museum of the Moving Image presented a number of commercials that had recently been restored from the Henson Archives , including Professor Madcliffe and Henrietta ( referred to here as Mildred ) who kept mispronouncing words in the script , Madcliffe and Icky Gunk as spies , Kermit and Harry the Hipster scatting some jazz on piano , Kermit and Harry describing a bacon package displayed on the wall at an art gallery , and Harry ( in drag , as a librarian ) suggesting meat books to Kermit in a library . Legacy . As Henson ' s advertising career continued , Muppets Inc . went on to produce commercials for another purveyor of canned sandwich filler , Wilson ' s Meats , before moving on to full - length Muppet television narratives . As for Esskay , the company was acquired by Smithfield Foods in 1986 , but the brand name and logo remain active , with Esskay franks serving as the official hot dog for the Baltimore Orioles and other local sports teams .