Until this point, the cans were only being produced around five to six cans an hour. In 1849, the first machine to manufacture canned goods was patented by Henry Evans and can production began to ramp up to around 50 cans per hour. Once this process was honed, everything was stored in cans; corned beef, tuna, even the mystery meat known as SPAM.

The Turn Around

Around 1960, John Mason introduced the first jar that was capable of being used at home. This was incredibly empowering at the home front as it allowed people to begin to can all of their own fruits and vegetables instead of buying canned goods at the store. There was a bit of an issue at first due to the price of the, well named, Mason jars. Farmers didn’t make enough money to buy them and the people who could afford them didn’t have farms.

From then until now, canning has grown drastically. Canned foods now allow us to survive through natural disasters, help the needy and are, in many cases; fresher than the foods we buy in the produce section. Why? They went from fresh to preserve within a couple of hours.

Today, cans are widely seen throughout the world and can openers have moved from a simple turn key to mechanical pieces or useable art. The next time you pick up a canned good, think about Napoleon Bonaparte and his ingenious call for invention that lead to the modern day way to preserve.