Iceberg lettuce was the salad staple people ate for most of the 20th century, popular due to its durability, long shelf life, and mild flavor.

Iceberg lettuce was introduced to the world in the 19th century by a Pennsylvania seed company and became popular thanks to its durability.

Tracing the history of refrigeration

Refrigeration has become critical to most of our lives. But not long ago, it wasn't available. How did we become so dependent on our fridges and freezers? This fun, informative podcast traces the history of keeping it cool with ice and...

Why pickles became a thing

Pickles began in Mesopotamia around 2400 BCE as a way to preserve vegetables amid heat (and spoilage). They spread through Egypt, Greece, and Rome, where Julius Caesar reportedly fed pickles to his soldiers, and brining was treated as a culinary art. The technique is broadly useful, as salt and water can extend the shelf life and deepen flavor for almost anything.

Learn the history of food science breakthroughs from the 20th century

Long after humans developed the means to produce sufficient food to feed civilizations, scientific research focused on a wide variety of objectives, such as developing methods to preserve food quality (accomplished via frozen food), speeding up cooking (leading to the microwave), and lowering the cost of sweetening food, which high fructose corn syrup provides.

The food processing techniques developed for World War II, later repurposed for consumers

Research projects funded or sponsored by the military led to the development of active dry yeast to make bread easier to bake and an improved version of dehydrated cheese, which would be used in powdered cheese snacks. Freeze-drying, which had been used to ease the transport of blood plasma to battlefields, where it would be reconstituted with water, was later used on fruit for cereals.

World War II helped convince food companies to produce more processed foods

Processed foods had existed since the 19th century, but they began infiltrating the mainstream during World War II, with foods designed to last on the battlefield for days. After the war, food companies saw great potential in the relatively cheap foods aimed at busy households. (Some readers may experience a paywall.)

Health food broke into the mainstream by the 1980s

A 1984 New York Times story noted that Americans were eating less red meat than a decade prior, and that, in general, the country was “talking, thinking and worrying about what they eat to a degree unique in the nation's history.” The feature then details foods that were then considered bizarre: whole-grain muffins, hummus, and a variety of vegetarian dishes. (Some readers may experience a paywall.)

Watermelons were once neither red nor sweet

The gargantuan summer picnic staple has a fascinating story: 100 million tons are produced worldwide and they take up the most space of any vegetable crop in the world. But not long ago, the flesh of the melon was white and it had a bitter taste.

The ancient crops we've forgotten how to grow

Roughly half of all world calories today stem from maize, wheat, and rice. But for most of history, plants were domesticated in highly local places. This video dives into the scientists learning about crops no longer highly in use that once fueled entire civilizations in North America. Some forgotten crops include pitseed goosefoot, maygrass, and sumpweed.

Why did the US make it illegal to sell sliced bread during WWII?

Pre-sliced bread has only been with us for almost 100 years, but during the course of World War II it was briefly banned to save on supplies like wax paper and stainless steel for the war effort. This Atlas Obscura article explores this amusing (though not at the time) bit of food during wartime history.

How fermentation enables the pickling of food and the production of beer

This process occurs when microbes produce lactic acid, ethanol, or carbon dioxide after consuming sugars. The acid helps preserve vegetables in a brine solution during pickling and gives them a sour taste, while ethanol serves as the inebriant in alcoholic beverages. The acid and carbon dioxide give sourdough bread its taste and texture.

The mystery of the cucumber, from coiling tendrils to its bitter, mature fruit

Cucumus sativus was first cultivated 3,000 years ago in the Himalaya of India, appearing in ancient Sanskrit hymns in the Hindu tradition. They are typically harvested well before maturation, as their yellow, final fruit is bitter. Their coiling tendrils were so distinct they prompted famed naturalist Charles Darwin to publish one of his lesser-known works, "On the Movements and Habits of Climbing Plants." Its refreshing coolness inspired cucumber-derived body washes and sprays over millennia.

Browse the prehistoric salad bar with these ancient plants

In this video, Benjamin Burger, associate professor of geology at Utah State University's Uintah Basin Campus talks about the different types of plants present during the Mesozoic Era. Professor Burger explores how these plants changed over time, served as food sources for the dinosaurs, and co-evolved with them during this period.

How the Great Depression still shapes the way Americans eat

From fortified foods to nutrition labels, the legacy of an early financial crisis lives on in kitchens across the United States. Ethnic foods with their (supposedly) hunger-triggering spices were vilified and considered “stimulants” along the lines of caffeine and so, in their stead came prune puddings, canned-meat stews, and dairy-heavy vegetable casseroles featuring America’s first fortified foods. Read more here.

A brief explainer on food expiration dates and what they really mean

Roughly 20% of food items in the US are thrown out because consumers don't understand how to interpret expiration labels. Over time, when supermarkets began carrying processed foods, grocers use packaging codes to track how long foods had been on...

Most expiration dates are completely made up

Producers, sellers, and consumers waste tons of food. In this 20-minute episode, John Oliver discusses the shocking amount of food we don't eat.

'Diet for a Small Planet' popularized the vegetarian diet

Frances Moore Lappe’s 1971 book provided recipes for vegetarian dishes, introducing millions to soy, sprouts, and tofu. It also argued that a vegetarian diet was a political act that could solve world hunger by redirecting food from livestock to humans.

Intriguing facts about tomatoes

This episode of the Lunchbox Envy podcast dives deep into the world of tomatoes. Why do they taste nicer in certain settings? Do they "scream"? What are their health benefits? All of these questions and more are answered about the luscious red fruit. Listen and reflect on the historical and cultural significance of the tomato.

The chemistry of ancient tacos

This 16-minute podcast explores the chemistry of Mesoamerica's corn tortillas, which involve a 3,500-year-old chemical process called nixtamalization that releases vitamins, including niacin, one of the essential B vitamins. This process also makes the tortillas softer and more delicious. Corn tortillas were a staple in Mesoamerica, and the archaeologist interviewed in this podcast argues cultures like the Aztecs and Maya wouldn't have thrived without nixtamalization.

A look at what was on the menu for ancient Romans

"Delicious Italy" is a website exploring the food culture of various Italian cities and regions, and in this article, the editors explore what is known about the diet of ancient Romans. Olives (and their oil) were a key daily essential, alongside grains like barley, millet, and spelt flour. Where meat was found it was most often ox, pork, deer, lamb, and even pigeons. Middle Eastern fruits like cherries and peaches could last long enough to travel to Roman cities around the Mediterranean, and candy-friendly dates were sourced from Africa. Explore this and much more at Delicious Italy.

How spoiled meat helped uncover a bacterium that can survive the vacuum of space

When a can of ground beef and pork spoiled despite attempts to sterilize it with gamma radiation, researcher Arthur Anderson isolated the bacteria in the food and discovered Deinococcus radiodurans. The polyextremophile has since been found on the walls of nuclear reactors and overcomes radiation damage through highly optimized DNA repair mechanisms.

The history of many kitchen appliances involves unexpected discoveries and applications, including wartime radar turned hamster defroster and replacing an 'ice king' with heat-stealing boxes.

Explore the history of antibiotics with 'This Podcast Will Kill You'

The show blends medical history with storytelling and science. In Episode 50, the hosts trace the dramatic origins of antibiotics—from Fleming's moldy petri dish to Florey's wartime labs—and explore their lasting impact on health.

Green algae have lived on Earth for about 1 billion years, roughly twice as long as the first plants.

Supplement sales soared during the pandemic, alongside growing distrust of the health establishment, amplifying a trend that endures—even when some of the products don't even work.

Tardigrades’ intrinsically disordered proteins may help preserve biological matter

Researchers have attempted to create more drought-resistant crops by introducing proteins that help protect tardigrades in their dehydrated tun state. The proteins’ ability to stabilize molecular degradation may allow scientists to develop refrigeration-free storage for vaccines, insulin, and blood.

The story of the 1945 Minnesota Starvation Experiment

Amid the severe conditions of World War II, researchers were eager to learn the effects of starvation in a controlled study. This podcast dives into a yearlong study of 36 men at a Minneapolis college who endured a six-month period of semi-starvation, where their caloric intake was halved. Results from the experiment became a landmark study in human starvation.

Fish in polar waters contain proteins in their blood that act as antifreeze, and some manufacturers have used lab-grown versions of these proteins to help keep ice cream smooth.

Listen to how the 1902 'poison squad' experiments changed food safety in America

As part of government research, a group of young men were paid to eat standard American food—replete with food additives like borax and formaldehyde—which revealed the dangers of unregulated food. The work was led by the first FDA commissioner, Harvey Wiley, who helped end the "century of the great stomachache."

Blue zone cooking—a concept that journalist Dan Buettner developed from his reporting on centenarian populations—emphasizes cooking with simple, fresh ingredients and echoes themes of the well-known Mediterranean diet.

A moldy cantaloupe supercharged penicillin production

In 1943, a moldy cantaloupe found at a market in Peoria, Illinois, yielded a strain that produced six times more penicillin. Though often credited to lab worker “Moldy Mary” Hunt, accounts differ on who actually brought in the fruit.

Processed foods were marketed to busy wives in the 1950s

In the 1950s, they were marketed as time-saving conveniences for young families, especially those living in the rapidly expanding suburbs, who could easily find them in local supermarkets, making them a seemingly sensible alternative to fresh foods.

What Americans ate after WWII

Returning from World War II, the American cultural landscape saw a vast number of changes. Cuisine, in particular, diversified and modernized thanks to traveled soldiers and wartime innovation. From inventions like powdered cheese to the popularization of instant coffee and Chinese food, explore the changes to the American food industry that continue to influence what we consume today.

Hippies explored the possibilities of organic food

The 1960s counterculture sought to buck traditions, including culinary ones. Hippies believed that healthier food was integral to dismantling the status quo and, in turn, started health food stores, espoused vegetarian diets, and cultivated organic food, which they found to be a welcome alternative to the over-commercialized farming industry. In the decades since the movement’s decline, many of its practices have been absorbed by the mainstream.

Eduard Baltzer encouraged 'natural eating' in the 1860s

Historian Corinna Treitel credits the Protestant minister with inventing the concept of “natural eating” in Nordhausen, Germany, in the 19th century. Baltzer believed that people were consuming excessive amounts of schnapps, sugar, and meat, and that this behavior was having a detrimental impact on their lives. He encouraged a diet mostly of fruits and vegetables, though he was not opposed to food grown with artificial fertilizers.

The history of molecular gastronomy, from thickening yolks with alcohol to making art with food

Before understanding why they worked, humans used scientific principles, including designing solutions and analyzing outcomes, to develop preservation methods like curing meat and fermenting vegetables. By the 20th century, the application of industrialized food preparation to smaller kitchens set the stage for the subdiscipline of food science.

Revelations that apples were sprayed with the chemical Alar led to its ban in the 1980s

Almost three decades after Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring,” a “60 Minutes” segment on the use of Alar, a chemical sprayed on apples, drew national attention and inspired supermarkets and schools to remove apples from their shelves and cafeterias. That same year, the Environmental Protection Agency took action against the use of the chemical in food.

How silica gel took over the world

Silica gel packets are those sugar packet-like bags that keep packaged foods and more dry and free of mildew. First invented in the early 20th century, they saw great commercial success starting in 1927, being deployed in traded goods across the world. This simple invention allows modern supply chains to extend across the globe by extending the preservation of shipped goods.