Food preservation in cans was patented in 1810 by the British merchant Peter Durand. The first commercial canning factory was opened in England in 1813. In 1846, tin cans could be manufactured at a rate of sixty per hour.
However, though Durand had figured out how to seal food into cans, he just left the consumer with the instruction: "Cut round the top near the outer edge with a chisel and hammer." [Source] This was complicated by the fact that the first tin-coated iron cans were made of thick metal, and often weighed more than the food they held. Usually, the cans were opened with heavy equipment by the clerk in the grocery store [Source].
The first can opener was patented in 1858, by Ezra Warner, and looked like a bent bayonet. It had the big advantage that the user pressed, rather than stabbed it, into the can. A metal guard kept the point from penetrating too far, to “perforate the tin without causing the liquid to fly out.” A second, curved blade could then be worked around the rim to finally remove the lid. Warner’s patent even claimed that “a child may use it without difficulty, or risk.” [Source]
It was only when thinner steel cans could be manufactured in the 1860s that a useful can opener could be invented. In 1866, J. Osterhoudt patented the tin can with a key opener that you can still find today on sardine cans [Source]. And the picture to the right shows a 21st century version of the can-opener.
I wonder whether, in some basement in England, there is a tin can with mixed pickles from 1812 (that however nobody can open with Black&Decker).
So, if you have a great idea don't forget instructions how to open the can, and keep in mind it might take some decades for the details to work out.
See also: Did you know...
- ... the opposite of eloquent?
- ... why the toast is called toast?
- ... what the Baconian method is?
- ... why Google is called Google?
or that bubblewrap was a complete flop with its original marketing idea?