Can Opener Day

Thermal treatment of food products for long-term storage in tins began to be practiced from the beginning of the 19th century. On August 25, 1810, the Englishman Peter Durand received a patent for containers for canned food, immediately selling it to two industrialists involved in supplying provisions to the British army and navy. Food was indeed stored in tin cans for a long time, but opening them, especially in camp conditions, was very difficult. The manufacturer suggested that buyers of canned goods use a hammer and chisel or chisel for these purposes. These tools were perfect for opening the first cans, made of wrought iron and lined with tin. However, this method was too complex and dangerous. A convenient and practical can opener appeared in 1858 in the USA. The device was patented by Ezra Warner. The product consisted of a handle and two blades: a sharp straight one for piercing a jar and a curved one for cutting the lid. A holiday was established in honor of the invention, which resembled a hybrid of a bayonet and a sickle. August 24th is Can Opener Day. The first products had a handle that looked like a bull's head. Later, manufacturers decided to abandon the Bul'ls Head and in 1870 settled on a simpler and more practical design. This model has survived to this day. But people continued to improve canning knives, wanting to make them more convenient for use in everyday life. Therefore, in the 1920s. A rotating cutter was introduced into the design of the products. The invention of the crank with a gear wheel belongs to Charles Arthur Bunker from the USA. In 1931, an electric can opener appeared that could open up to 20 cans within a minute. In honor of Can Opener Day, it is customary to remember not only Ezra Warner, but also another inventor - the Englishman Robert Yates. He received a patent for a can opener in 1855. Yates opened cans of stew for free in his grocery store, thus advertising the store and acquiring regular customers. In the middle of the 19th century. information did not spread as quickly as in the 21st century. Therefore, the question of who was the craftsman who first invented the can opener remains open to this day. Devices for opening cans are found in the kitchen of every home. The classic model is used for uncorking beer bottles, cracking nuts and for other purposes. Back in 1866, an inventor from New York, Ostehoudt, patented a canning jar equipped with a lever-opener. When you turn the key, the lid rolls up. A ring-shaped lever turned out to be a cheaper and more convenient method than using a knife, but it was only in the 1990s that people began to open cans with it en masse. Therefore, paying tribute to tradition and the “classics of the genre,” admirers of Ezra Warner’s invention celebrate August 24 as Can Opener Day.