Food Theory Blog #4: Innovate

 Hi everyone! In this last blog post for CMDI 1030 we will examine an example of innovation in the culinary industry provided by the popcorn machine. So let's see what we can learn about it!

Customers gathered around one of Cretors' peanut and popcorn wagon powered by a steam engine in 1885 (Cretors, n.d.)

History

The first popcorn machine was invented by the American Charles Cretors in 1885 (America's Favourite Popcorn, 2021). Owner of a confectionary shop in Decatur, Illinois, he wanted to redesign a peanut roaster machine he had previously purchased and was not happy with, and noticed he was now able to use it to pop corn kernels in a uniform way. This was done through the use of a small steam engine. Later that year, he acquired a vendor's license to be able to sell popcorn outside his store and created the first popcorn-centered company in the way of C. Cretors & Company.

Popcorn was not a treat that appeared along with Cretors' invention: indeed, researchers have found evidence of fossilized popped corn kernels in Mexico dating back to 3000 BC (Falkowitz, n.d.). Historically, corn would be popped by roasting it in a pan over an open fire before adding seasoning like salt or melted butter. This meant, however, that the kernels were not popped uniformly, that some of them would become unedible due to charring and that seasoning was not spread evenly (Invention Geek, 2011). Cretors's popcorn machine fixed those issues by...

What remained of the century testifies of Cretors' expertise in engineering: in 1893, he upgraded his machine to pop kernels in oil, and in 1900 created the Special, a horse-drawn popcorn wagon. Later on, machines were upgraded by being powered using electricity. He also successfully marketed himself into the collective consciousness of Americans of the time, by presenting his machine at the 1893 Chicago's Columbian Exposition, where his snack was a roaring success with attendees, and popcorn becoming associated with going to the cinema from the 1920s onwards. Needless to say, when patrons started to expect cinemas to offer popcorn, the demand for popcorn machines skyrocketed.

Even to this day, Cretors is considered the gold standard of popcorn machine manufacturing in the USA. Still based in Illinois, the company is headed by the fifth generation of the Cretors dynasty involved in the business (Trending Today, 2021). Nonetheless, one might argue their success could be greatly impacted by COVID restrictions should the cinema industry become negatively affected, which would lower the amount of prospective popcorn machine buyers.

Innovation

Images Cited

Cretors. (n.d.). Popcorn wagon [Photograph]. Cretors. https://www.cretors.com/an-age-of-invention/

Works Cited

America’s Favourite Popcorn. (2021, February 16). Who Invented the Popcorn Machine? https://americasfavoritepopcorn.com/blogs/all-blogs/who-invented-the-popcorn-machine

Falkowitz, M. (n.d.). Who Invented Popcorn? Taste. https://tastecooking.com/who-invented-popcorn/

Invention Geek. (2011, July 6). Butter, Salt and Lard – Refining Popcorn. Patent Plaques. http://patentplaques-blog.com/history-of-popcorn-making/

Trending Today. (2021, June 25). INNOVATIONS IN FOOD & CULINARY INDUSTRY 2021 | Trending Today [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXWprmZ0NLM