Food storage has changed dramatically in the last few centuries. There are many different ways to store and preserve food. Although humans have been storing food since the beginning of time, the ways we have preserved food keep changing and becoming more advanced.
Right from the time that food is dug up from the ground or harvested, it begins to break down. For many, this is a major issue because it means the food will spoil and waste before people are able to finish eating it.
By learning to store and preserve food well, people were able to have more food to consume later, and also allowed them to be less wasteful of the food they fought so hard to grow and plant.
This guide will cover the evolution of food storage and preservation and how it has become more and more advanced over the years.
History of Food Packaging
Food storing began around 3500 BC when the Ancient Egyptians began glass blowing in order to create containers where they could store food and drinking water. Around 105 AD, it was Emperor Ts’ai Lun who first invented paper which was also used to package and preserve food in order to eat later.
He was able to make paper by taking a mix of paper and bamboo and then drying it in the sun before using it.
This allowed people in ancient times to store food for later. This allowed them to spend less time gathering and trying to find food.
In the Medieval period, barrels and wooden boxes were used to store food and water especially when people were traveling by boat and needed to cross oceans.
The industrial revolution is when food storage as we know it today began to take place. The main focus during the industrial period was creating ways to mass produce things and making food packaging more durable and accessible.
During this time, canning was introduced when Nicholas Appert began sealing cooked food into glass containers and then boiling them to sterilize them before eating.
Some people also canned using tin instead of glass. During this time, cardboard boxes were invented and people began to store dry goods. People also stored dry food in these boxes so they could travel with them easier.
Packaging in the Mass Production and Modern Era
The mass production era also saw many different changes when it came to food storage and food production.
For example, here are some of the things created during the mass production era that made food storage easier:
- Corks were invented by William Painter so a metal cap and a layer of cork were used to insert inside bottles and protect the drink from going bad.
- Cereal boxes were first invented.
- Plastic containers were invented including Saran Wrap.
- Aluminum cans were invented to be able to store drinks like sparkling water, energy drinks, and sodas.
- Plastic bottles were invented that could hold carbonated drinks.
In the modern era, even more things to help with food storage were made including:
- Pads and preservation packets were made to go inside food packaging so the food would stay fresh for longer.
- Packaging films were made so that boxes and food would not get odors inside.
- Special materials were made to be able to control the temperature of food and insulate items so they could stay cool for longer.
- Cold storage construction was also invented including modern-day refrigerators and freezers which allowed people to keep food for days and even months at a time without it going bad.
Even though food packaging as we see it today is very advanced, there are still more and more advancements being made. In the years and decades to come, we will see even more advancements that help to keep food safe.
History of Food Preservation
Food preservation has been practiced even longer than food storage. From the beginning of time, people saw the need to ensure that all the food they worked so hard to gather and grow didn’t spoil in just one day.
Food preservation has many different things that go behind it and not all food preservation is the same. Here is a look at the evolution of food preservation and how it helped people to keep their food from spoiling:
- Drying. This was the earliest form of food preservation when people would put their foods out to dry in the hot sun. It worked for many different types of food including fish, domestic animals, fruits, and vegetables.
- Fermenting. Most people agree that fermenting was accidentally discovered and not done on purpose. People might have accidentally left some barley out in the rain and then it was able to ferment and turn into beer. Then people begin experimenting with fermenting fruits in wine including making Kimchi and Sauerkraut.
- Freezing. Although they did not have modern freezers, ancient people still had their own ways of keeping food cold. They would make icehouses and then store the food inside these small shelters to keep food cold for long periods of time. Cellars, caves, and shaded steam where the water was cold were all used as types of old-school freezers.
- Pickling. This is thought to have started when people begin to store food inside wine or beer. However, it soon became storing food in vinegar which is how modern pickling is done. As Europe began to colonize other countries, pickling became more common as a way to preserve food when brought over on boats and ships.
- Curing. Curing was used to dry and salt food to make it last longer. This was especially important because people discovered that the use of nitrites is what killed many different types of bacteria.
Final Thoughts
Food storage and preservation have been around for as long as humans have been around, but it has become more and more advanced in the last few centuries as modern technology has been able to keep food fresh and safe to eat for longer.