The Story of Frozen Food

Clarence Birdseye patented a method for packaging frozen foods August 12, 1930. Clarence Birdseye was a man of vision, curiosity and persistence. During his travels through the Arctic, he saw Eskimos use ice, wind and temperature to freeze just-caught fish almost instantly to retain its freshness. He envisioned a way to apply this flash freezing process to vegetables—a simple biological concept that would revolutionize the frozen food industry.

During flash freezing, vegetables are frozen so fast that only small ice crystals are able to form. The veggies' cell walls aren’t damaged, which protects their maximum flavor, texture and color. Back in the U.S., Birdseye formed the General Seafood Corporation with some wealthy partners who believed in his process. In 1926, the partners' financial support allowed Birdseye to unveil the “Quick Freeze Machine."

Birdseye then focused on great food and selling it, including the development of freezer grocery display cases. By 1944, Birdseye's company was leasing refrigerated boxcars to transport frozen foods, making national distribution a reality and Birdseye a legend. Birds Eye® shares our founder's commitment and celebrates his contributions to making delicious, high-quality vegetables accessible to everyone. https://www.birdseye.com/birds-eye-view/history