Dates: Tuesday, April 29th or Thursday, May 1st, 9:30am
Location: Online - see your e-mail!
Our reading this week comes to us courtesy of Tara Gilboy. Check
out her write up below and tune in for a highly recommended tour
of the museum this week!
This week, we are switching gears a bit and heading to Austin,
Minnesota, where we will be taking a virtual tour of the Spam
Museum! This is bound to be a fascinating and unusual
presentation, as we will get to explore the unique and surprising
history of Spam! In advance of this week's class, I thought it would
be interesting to take a look at some food history and dig into the
little-known history of canned foods! Canned foods are something
we likely eat every week, and yet few of us know how they came to
be invented!
To get in the mood of our virtual trip, let's start, though, with this
fascinating video about the history and production of Spam! Click
here to watch:
Did You Know?
Spam is made with just six ingredients:
Canned and processed foods often get a bad rap (sometimes deservedly, in the case of junk food). But humans have been “processing” food ever since we learned how to cook, preserve, ferment, freeze, dry or extract. From pickling and salting to smoking and drying, humans have been finding ways to make food last longer since prehistoric times. But until the 18th century, an efficient—and truly effective—means of preservation remained elusive.
In 1795, the French government decided to do something about the need for preserving food. The French government needed a stable source of food for far-flung soldiers and seamen. France's leaders decided to offer a 12,000-franc prize through the Society for the Encouragement of Industry for a breakthrough in the preservation of food.
Nicolas Appert, a young chef from the region of Champagne, was determined to win. Appert, who had worked as a chef for the French nobility, dove into the study of food preservation. He eventually came up with a radical innovation: food packed in champagne bottles, sealed airtight with an oddly effective mixture of cheese and lime. Appert’s discovery built on earlier imperfect techniques, which either removed air or preserved food by heat but hadn’t managed to do both.
Nicolas Appert
Running a bustling lab and factory, Appert soon progressed from champagne bottles to wide-necked glass containers. In 1803 his preserved foods (which came to include vegetables, fruit, meat, dairy and fish) were sent out for sea trials with the French navy. By 1804, his factory had begun to experiment with meat packed in tin cans, which he soldered shut and then observed for months for signs of swelling. Those that didn’t swell were deemed safe for sale and long-term storage.
How does canned food last so long? Learn this and more in this four-minute video by clicking here: https://youtu.be/9AgzORAaFRQ
In 1806 the legendary gastronomist Grimod de la Reynière wrote glowingly of Appert, noting that his canned fresh peas were “green, tender and more flavorful than those eaten at the height of the season.” Three years later, Appert was officially awarded the government's prize, with the stipulation that he publish his method. He did in 1810 as The Art of Preserving, for Several Years, all Animal and Vegetable Substances.
Appert’s process (which was quickly built upon by canners across the English Channel) was all the more amazing because it predated Louis Pasteur’s discoveries of germ growth and sterilization by more than 50 years. Canned food also predated, by around 30 years, the can opener itself. The first metal canisters were made of tin-plated steel or even cast iron, with heavy lids that had to be chiseled open or stabbed through with soldiers’ bayonets. (To learn more about the first cans and can openers, you might enjoy this article from the Smithsonian Magazine.)
After winning the prize, Appert spent many more years working to improve his method amidst the chaos of post-Napoleonic France. His factories remained innovative but unprofitable, and he died a poor man in 1841 and was buried in a common grave. By then variants of his process were used to can foods ranging from New York oysters and Nantes sardines to Italian fruit and Pennsylvania tomatoes.
Industrialized canning had been at work in the United States since 1812. But the Civil War in mid-century, and the demand over many years for battlefield-ready food supplies, gave factory food production its first big nudge.
Van Camp, one of the earliest manufacturers still in operation, started in 1861 and supplied canned beans to the Union Army under a military contract. Returning veterans brought back a taste for the products along with an appreciation of the convenience.
The decades leading up to and just into the 20th century brought technological advances that propelled the food manufacturing industry into prominence in the U.S. Before this time, canned food was common but it mostly supplemented diets rather than predominating at the table. This was in part because processed food was more expensive than fresh food.
The discovery of natural gas in 1890 and the subsequent increase of domestic tinplate production made factory operations more affordable. The widespread use of the double-seam tin can around 1904 meant no more soldering and vastly more efficient production lines.
During World War II when nearly-full employment brought canned goods and packaged foods within economic reach for more, rationing of canned goods limited their use in American kitchens. After the war, it was a different story.
Supermarkets anchored a new post-war housing model. After World War II, planned communities sprang up across the country. Marketed towards veterans eligible for low-interest, government backed mortgages, tens of thousands of families moved into the suburbs. The new suburban homes were constructed with the latest in modern technology, including the all-electric kitchen.
Post-war economic prosperity encouraged conspicuous consumption. Processed foods, easily and quickly assembled into meals using electric appliances, became standard fare. Grocery bills went up as women happily purchased more and more convenience foods. Food company marketing materials assured women that their products were both high quality and healthy. And products like Tupperware, Saran Wrap, and GE refrigerators encouraged saving and repurposing leftovers, claiming that the savings off-set the higher price of processed, packaged food.
Technology has given people many more choices in how and where to spend their time. Contemporary women spend less time on household chores, including cooking, than their mid-century counterparts. Technology, media, and marketing in the 1950s changed the way Americans cooked and eat.
A 2016 study found that nearly 60% of the calories consumed in the modern, American diet come from processed foods. While the flavors and packaging have evolved with contemporary tastes, for better or worse, processed and packaged foods remain household staples. As does an emphasis on convenience.
Just for Fun!
If you are interested in learning more about food history, you might enjoy this video from The History Channel about food fads from every decade (12 minutes)
You might also enjoy this more detailed article about the history of canning and processed foods: https://www.sciencehistory.org/distillations/processed-food-science-and-the-modern-meal
If this week's presentation has got you itching to try some Spam for yourself, you might want to start with some of these recipes below.
Candied Spam Waffles
Spam Fried Rice
Spam Burgers
Click the link to check out some more popular Spam recipes:
We have discussed these before in past visits and I hope someone tries them! You can find the recipe for SPAM cookies (yes, seriously) here: https://jeanelleats.com/spam-cookies/