The invention of the tin can in 1810 changed the history of food forever. The challenge, though, was getting the contents of the can out and into people’s stomachs. It would take nearly two centuries for designers to perfect the can opener, and by then it was too late, writes Colin Bisset.

The invention of the tin can in 1810 was an important milestone in the history of food consumption. It combined airtight sealing and a food preservation technique developed for Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, whose lengthy wartime campaigns often took his troops away from reliable food sources. The first cans were sealed by soldering discs of metal to the top and bottom of a tube, creating an immensely heavy can, even before it was filled. The solder used was a lead-tin alloy which meant that early tinned foods are thought to have poisoned those who relied heavily on them, such as explorers on expeditions to remote sites like Antarctica. Similar issues still exist, with the plastic coating that now lines most tin cans under scrutiny for potentially leeching chemicals and contaminating the contents.

The first truly efficient opener, which gripped the can and cleanly sliced off both the top and the rim, was only introduced in the 1980s, nearly 170 years after the first can left the factory.

The first canning factory opened not in France, but in London in 1813. What is most remarkable is how the means of opening the tins became one of the longest-running design challenges of the past two centuries. Initial instructions were to use a hammer and chisel which, given the thickness of the metal in the first containers, was not as heavy-handed as it sounds. Soldiers used their bayonets. Thankfully, a dedicated opener designed by London cutler Robert Yates appeared in 1855, though it was little more than a variation on the bayonet, stabbing into the metal top and then see-sawing around the rim to create an opening with a fearsome jagged edge.

The more familiar cutting wheel was invented in 1870 by William Lyman. The process was hardly simple, however, as it entailed first piercing the centre of the tin to enable the sharp opener to pivot around the top. It was only in 1925, with the addition of a second serrated-edged wheel, that the process was made more efficient. In 1931, pliers-style handles enabled the can to be tightly gripped as it was being opened. Electric and wall-mounted versions soon followed, which used magnets to strengthen the grip on the can. The first truly efficient opener, which gripped the can and cleanly sliced off both the top and the rim, was only introduced in the 1980s, nearly 170 years after the first can left the factory.

After the initial popularity of canned foods and an appreciation of the ease with which foods could be transported across the world (satisfying the hunger of colonials who missed the familiar fruits of the mother country, for instance), reliance on tinned foods in the home began to wane with the first appearance of frozen food in 1929, introduced to America by Clarence 'Captain' Birdseye.

Although the idea of preserving food using ice had been around for some time, and was used in the fishing industry as well as by those who could afford to build separate ice houses in their homes, the widespread adoption of the method was only possible when electric refrigerators became more commonplace from the 1930s onwards. Tins of food, however, remained essential for supplying troops on manoeuvres during wartime and in domestic situations when electric power was lost. They remain useful for any camping expedition.

In the early 20th century, cans with perforations that were soldered to become airtight again were used for fish products such as sardines. Using a key that was attached to the can, the top could be rolled back using brute force. In the 1940s, tinned beef from South America was exported to the world with a similar key, which enabled the top to be removed, rolling back a sliver of the metal casing around the perimeter of the can. But like the common can, this was replaced by a new method: the pull-tab.

Just when the design world seemed to have finally come up an opener that easily removed the top of a can, the pull-tab opening which had been popular for fizzy drinks since the 1960s was universally adapted for tinned foods. After almost two centuries of striving to find the perfect can opener, the requirement vanished and a design imperative became non-existent. All the same, the employees of the first canning factory would never have believed what a creative can of worms they opened.

By Design looks at the places and things we imagine, build, use and occupy, explaining how creative ideas take tangible form through the design process. Follow Colin Bisset on Twitter @Cdbisset.



