What would we see if we take a peek into yourrefrigerator ? Condiments ? Takeout containers ? Something unrecognizably fuzzy ? Do n’t be embarrassed – that describes the fridge ledge of many of us , whether we let in it or not . mayhap it ’s a busy life story or just a lack of cooking acquirement , but sometimes it ’s hard to whip up a homemade dinner party ( or breakfast or lunch ) . Frozen entrees to the rescue !
swear on frozen public lavatory foods is nothing new – who actually make up them , however , is a turn more disputative . Though acknowledgment is wide given to the Swanson brothers , it deal a combination of a stocking error at Swanson , a wakeful bulb melodic theme by Swanson company salesman Gerry Thomas after a visit to Pan American Airways in Pittsburgh and some smart marketing to give raise to the TV dinner party .
Some may credit Clarence Birdseye with inventing frozen meal . He developed a system of packing and newsflash - freeze fresh food back in 1923 . By 1949 , Albert and Meyer Bernstein were selling frozen dinner party on compartmentalizedaluminumtrays in the Pittsburgh sphere . But it was Swanson ’s massive 1954 advertising drive that seal the mass on TV dinner for consumers .
The first TV dinner produced by Swanson were in answer to a trouble they had withThanksgivingturkey leftovers . Not just a few Tupperware containers , either – we ’re talking about 260 tons ( 235 metrical tons ) of turkey leftovers . So they appealed to their actor to come up with idea . Gerry Thomas had just find theairplane - friendly compartmentalized Al trays used by Pan American Airways and introduced the idea to the Swanson brother back home in Nebraska . They packaged Republic of Turkey , edible corn lucre overindulge , peas and odorous spud and hung their advertising hunting expedition on the raw craze to hit the nation : telecasting . That twelvemonth , Swanson betray more than 25 million TV dinner to hungry Americans , at 98 centime per package . idiot box dinners were a hit .
Over the years , frozen meal have extend to develop to meet Americans ' wants . More menu option were added . dessert , too . In the sixties , Swanson expand its argumentation of repast to breakfast and lunch . In 1973 , tv set dinners got supersized when the Campbell Soup Company ( Swanson ’s parent company ) introduced Hungry - Man , extra - large frozen repast direct toward , well , hungrymen .
A coup d’oeil into the freezers at your local supermarket is all you demand to know that today ’s frozen accession are distant cousins to the joker tv set dinner of the fifties . Butternut squash ravioli , lemongrass coconut chicken , beef tips Portobello … the options read like the menu of a gourmet restaurant . Research conducted by the Nutrition Business Journal express sales of natural andorganicfrozen dinner and other frosty public convenience foods have seen steady ontogeny ( between 10 to 14 percent a class ) since 1997 ; in 2001 , consumer spent $ 380 million on them [ source : Ferrier ] . to boot , some company offer speciality frozen foods for the great unwashed with food allergies ( include gluten - free options ) , restricted sodium inspiration , as well as meals forvegetariansandvegans . And for those of you watching your waist , there are low - fat and low - calorie frozen entrees out there , too .
