John Harvey Kellogg, a nutritionist, patented a nut butter in 1895 for patients at his Battle Creek Sanitarium. Made by boiling nuts and grinding them into paste, it was promoted as a healthy meat alternative. While bland by modern standards, it gained attention among elite clients.
By the early 1900s, peanut butter production scaled up when Joseph Lambert, a former Kellogg employee, invented machines to roast and grind peanuts. This lowered costs and boosted popularity. During WWI, rationing made peanuts a key protein source, further embedding peanut butter in American diets.
In 1921, Joseph Rosefield solved peanut butter’s oil separation issue with partial hydrogenation, creating a stable, shelf-ready product. He later founded Skippy, introducing innovations like crunchy peanut butter and wide jars. Sliced bread in the late 1920s made peanut butter sandwiches a household favorite.
By WWII, peanut butter was essential for both soldiers and civilians. Today, nearly 90% of U.S. households consume it. Its role in history even extends to modern science—Yale researchers used peanut butter’s strong smell in early COVID-19 studies to identify asymptomatic carriers.
John Harvey Kellogg patented a nut butter in 1895 for patients at his sanitarium, promoting it as a meat alternative. Made by boiling and grinding nuts, it gained attention among his elite clientele. By 1900, Joseph Lambert invented machines to mass-produce peanut butter. pic.twitter.com/Mn48XOfyLa
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