Cereal is the most consumed product for breakfast. Cereal is a food made from processed grains, and is eaten hot or cold. Many people mix it with milk, yogurt or fruit. The numbers of different types of breakfast cereal in the U.S. have grown from 160 in 1970 to 4945 in 2012; so, whatever cereal you are looking for, I am sure it is out there.

Porridge, as we know today, is considered the first cereal and can be dated back several centuries, when items such as barley, oats, hominy and other grains were consumed. In China, rice congee is served for breakfast, in Greece a cornmeal poured in boiling milk to a thick consistency is often served to young children, and in Russia, kasha is very popular.

The first cold cereal was invented in the United States in 1863, but never really became popular due to the fact that granola needed to be soaked overnight to be consumed. Battle Creek, Michigan is home to what we know as cereal and is nicknamed “Cereal Capital of the World.” In 1895, John Harvey Kellogg launched the Cornflakes brand, which captured the market in cereal as a healthy breakfast. Soon, there were forty rival manufacturers in the Battle Creek area to compete with the Cornflakes brand. In 1906, his brother, William Kellogg, bought the rights to Cornflakes and stared the Kellogg Toasted Corn Flake Company. There are now 2.7 billion boxes, enough to wrap around the earth thirteen times, of cereal sold every year. Grab your bowl today and have some cereal!

Questions?

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