FOOD HISTORY TIMELINE
2020 to 20242020 Borden Dairy Co., one of America’s oldest and largest dairy companies, filed for bankruptcy. 2020 The movie 'A Chef’s Voyage' premiered. Following Chef David Kinch journey from their 3 Michelin Star restauran in California on a collaboration with three legendary chefs at their iconic restaurants in Paris, Provence and Marseille. 2020 Pakistan struggles to contain the most devastating locust swarms in 25 years. Punjab province pays locals 20 rupees (12 cents) per kilogram to catch the locusts to be used as chicken feed. 2020 An Expensive Fart: A man in Vienna, Austria was fined 500 euros ($536) for standing on a park bench and loudly breaking wind during an encounter with police 2020 With hard freeze warnings in Florida, the National Weather Service warned "don't be surprised if you see Iguanas falling from trees tonight." (At temperatures below 45 degrees F. the go into a dormant state, and after 8 hours a significant number begin to die.) 2020 China announces a quarintine of Wuhan province due to the Coronavirus. 2020 A Washington state man who had visited Wuhan, China confirmed as U.S. 1st Coronavirus case. 2020 U.S. President Trump declares a national emergency to combat Coronavirus. 2020 The World Health Organization (WHO) declares the Coronavirus outbreak a Pandamic (widespread over several countries). 2020 Many Food Festivals, state fairs and celebrations have been cancelled or postponed due to Coronavirus concerns. 2020 Most New Year's Eve celebrations around the world have been cancelled or drastically scalled back due to the coronavirus pandemic. 2020 The United Kingdom (UK) officially leaves the European Union (EU) after 45 years. Details to be worked out by December 31, 2020. 2020 12 year old Ryder Day won the Fort Worth junior steer champion grand prize with a Hereford steer named Cupid Shuffle, at the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo. The steer sold for a record $300,000. 2020 Ice fisherman Thomas Knight caught a 40 inch, 37.7 pound lake trout on Big Diamond Pond in West Stewartstown, New Hampshire. It is the largest lake trout on record in New England. 2020 Joseph Hardin Coulombe died (born 1930). Founder of the grocery store chain Trader Joe's in 1967. 2020 Oil prices have dropped almost 30% due to a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia. 2020 Floyd Cardoz died (born Oct 2, 1960). World-renowned chef and TV star, Cardoz, married regional Indian cuisine with French and new American flavors, with several restaurants in his native Mumbai (Bombay) India and New York. He died from complications from COVID-19 (Coronavirus). 2020 Busch Beer offers a year of free beer to 250 couples whose weddings were postponed due to the Coronavirus outbreak. 2020 Gerber, the iconic baby food brand, has chosen Magnolia Earl as its 2020 Gerber Baby, the first adopted baby chosen as the company's 'spokes-baby since the tradition bean in 1928.. 2020 To pass the time after being furloughed, Charlie Lello, a woman in Hertfordshire, England decided to try incubating 3 duck eggs purchased at a Waitrose supermarket. A month later they hatched 3 healthy ducklings. She named them Beep, Peep and Meep. 2020 Former CEO of Bumble Bee Foods was sentenced to a 40 month jail term and a $100,000 fine for his role in a canned tuna price fixing conspiracy involving Bumble Bee, StarKist and Chicken of the Sea brands. (see also Sept 11, 2019 and Aug 4, 2017). 2020 Quaker Oats is retiring the Aunt Jemima pancake brand and logo that have long been criticized as perpetuating racial stereotypes. 2020 After heavy criticism for promoting racial sterotypes, Mars Inc. 'Uncle Ben's' rice is getting a new name, 'Ben's Original' and the logo of an elderly African American man will be dropped from the packaging. For the same reasons, Conagra will review branding and packaging of Mrs. Butterworth's syrup. 2020 Land O'Lakes butter will remove the American Indian maiden its butter box, in use since 1928; the logo has long been criticized. 2020 Dryers Ice Cream will change name of 'Eskimo Pie,' due to its racially tinged name. 2020 Burbank, California tied its record high temperature of 114 degrees. 2020 A record setting heat wave in Southern California; Woodland Hills in L.A. County hit 121 degrees, Escondido 115 degrees. 2020 The California Dept. of Forestry & Fire Protection reports that wildfires have burned almost 4 million acres so far this year (October) and killed 31 people. 2020 Canada: Officials of Jasper National Park in Alberta province have put up digital road signs “Do not let moose lick your car.” Moose need salt in their diet and have found the road salt that splashes on cars irresistible - a practice dangerous to cars, drivers and the moose. 2020 Coronavirus - December: Global cases total more than 67 million with over 1,540,000 deaths; U.S. cases total more than 15 million with more than 288,000 deaths. 2020 Waffle House and Oconee Brewing Co. of Georgia released Bacon & Kegs, a bacon infused red ale. 2020 Strong winds piled Tumbleweeds as high as 20-30 feet and blocked state road #240, 20 miles west of Richland, Washington. Crews from the Washington state Department of Transportation worked through the night to clear the roadway, which was closed for about 10 hours. 2020 Coronavirus: About 17% of America’s restaurants have permanently closed. 2021 A man in Tulare County, California was arrested for stealing 42,000 pounds of pistachios.
2021 Aunt Jemima products rebranded as Pearl Milling Company are starting to appear on store shelves. The brand has long been criticized as perpetuating racial stereotypes. (see also June 17, 2020). 2021 At the annual Abdulaziz Camel Festival in Saudi Arabia, where breeders compete for nearly $66 million in prize money, more than 40 camels were disqualified from a camel beauty pageant after getting Botox injections, facelifts and other cosmetic enhancements. 2021 Edward Osborne Wilson died. (born June 10, 1929). An American naturalist, he was considered one of the world’s leading authorities on natural history and conservation. 2021 An historic snowstorm and freezing temperatures cause Texas power grid failure, freezing water pipes and leaving millions without power, heat or water. 2021 One of the world's largest container ships is stuck sideways in the Suez Canal, blocking traffic on the critical waterway. The ship is 224,00 tonnes, 400m (1300 ft) long and has 17,000 containers. More than 200 ships backed up waiting to pass through the canal, which provides passage for about 10% of all world's seaborne trade 2021 Extreme heatwave hits the Pacific Northwest breaking all time high temperature records. Seattle, Washington posted a record 108 degrees; Portland Oregon reaches a scorching 116 degrees breaking its previous record by 8 degrees. 2021 According to the U.N., current world population is estimated to be 7.9 billion people. 2021 Ado Campeol died (born 1928). Italian restaurateur, owned Le Beccherie restaurant in Treviso, Italy and was known as 'the father of tiramisu.' The famous Italian dessert was created at the restaurant by his wife Alba and Chef Roberto Linguanotto. 2021 There are numerous shortages of Holiday related food items including Cream Cheese, Candy Canes and Peppermint. 2021 Coronavirus - December: Global cases total more than 266,628,000 with over 5,276,000 deaths; U.S. cases total more than 50,104,000 with more than 809,600 deaths. 2022 U.S. Coronavirus deaths exceed 1 million. 2022 A California court ruled that a bumblebee is a fish under California law, and thus should be protected by the state’s endangered species ordinances. The judges explained that "although the term fish is colloquially and commonly understood to refer to aquatic species," the law, as it is written, makes the legal "definition of fish… not so limited." 2023 Brazilian officials confiscated over 63,000 pounds of shark fins that were destined for Asian markets, where they are used in traditional Chinese medicine or served as a delicacy in shark fin soup, and can fetch up to $1,300 per pound. About 73 million sharks are killed around the world for their fins each year. 2024 The stock market closes above 41,000 for the first time (41,198). 2024 The CDC has reported that the listeria outbreak linked to Boar's Head deli meat, with a recall of about 7.2 million pounds of deli meat, has now resulted in at least 57 hospitalizations, including 8 deaths in 18 states. (see also July 30, 2024)
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