WEBVTT - BrainStuff Classics: Why Is Bacon Considered a Breakfast Food?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey

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<v Speaker 1>brain Stuff, I'm Lauren Vogelbaum, and I've got a classic

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<v Speaker 1>episode for you from our erstwhile host, Christian Sagar. Bacon

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<v Speaker 1>may have seen its peak internet fame a couple of

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<v Speaker 1>years ago, but it still has a home on many

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<v Speaker 1>humans plates, especially at breakfast. But this wasn't always the case.

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<v Speaker 1>Here's why, Hey brain Stuff, it's me Christian Sagar. Every day,

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<v Speaker 1>before I head into the studio, I have a healthy,

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<v Speaker 1>hearty breakfast of eggs, coffee, and of course bacon. Well

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<v Speaker 1>I'm vegetarian, so in my case it's veggie bacon who

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<v Speaker 1>has their life together enough to eat breakfast every day? Anyways, Right,

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<v Speaker 1>that's crazy talk. But the point is this. If you

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<v Speaker 1>are in the United States, then you already know that

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<v Speaker 1>bacon is one of the most popular breakfast foods in civilization,

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<v Speaker 1>right up there with eggs. But this wasn't always the case.

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<v Speaker 1>For much of American history, breakfast would be something simple

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<v Speaker 1>like a slice of buttered toast with coffee and orange juice.

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<v Speaker 1>And believe it or not, there's one man responsible for

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<v Speaker 1>changing the way America eats breakfast. His name Edward Burne's.

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<v Speaker 1>I know, I know you're probably wondering, how could just

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<v Speaker 1>one guy sway the minds of millions. Wasn't bacon already around? Yeah? Sure,

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<v Speaker 1>bacon or cured pork has been around in European cuisine

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<v Speaker 1>for hundreds and hundreds of years, but it wasn't thought

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<v Speaker 1>of as a breakfast food. So in and Out Foot

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<v Speaker 1>named the Beechnut Packing Company hired Edward Burnet's to boost

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<v Speaker 1>their bacon sales. Most ad guys at the time would

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<v Speaker 1>have high tailed it to a pitch room brainstorming catchy

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<v Speaker 1>slogans like Macon bacon, for example, or that bacon pancake

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<v Speaker 1>song from Adventure Time, But Berne's didn't go straight for ads. Instead,

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<v Speaker 1>he commissioned a study. In a quote scientific poll Berne

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<v Speaker 1>Has had, a physician asked five thousand doctors the same

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<v Speaker 1>loaded question, is a quote hearty breakfast better than a

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<v Speaker 1>light breakfast to replace energy lost by the body at night.

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<v Speaker 1>Because of the way the poll was phrased, most doctors

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<v Speaker 1>agreed that a hearty breakfast was superior. Burns reported these

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<v Speaker 1>quote scientific results to other doctors across the United States.

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<v Speaker 1>He also embarked upon a broadcast in print campaign reporting

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<v Speaker 1>these results along with advertisements for bacon. This campaign exhibited

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<v Speaker 1>some brilliant, if not exactly ethical strategies. First, it used

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<v Speaker 1>the appearance of objective scientific evidence. Second, this evidence came

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<v Speaker 1>from trusted authority figures, and third it sounded like nutritional

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<v Speaker 1>advice rather than an add Whether you like bacon or not,

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<v Speaker 1>you can't argue with the results. Beach nut profits sword

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<v Speaker 1>and today, bacon is a major breakfast heavyweight. Each year,

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<v Speaker 1>people consume more than one point seven billion pounds of

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<v Speaker 1>this stuff in the United States alone own and that's

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<v Speaker 1>just counting statistics from the food service industry. A little

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<v Speaker 1>more than half of all U S homes keep bacon

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<v Speaker 1>on hand at all times. So there you have it,

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<v Speaker 1>the story of how one man fundamentally changed the way

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<v Speaker 1>America eats every morning. That's not the only thing he

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<v Speaker 1>successfully sold either. He popularized soap, cigarettes, and even one war.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's episode was written by Ben Bolan and produced by

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<v Speaker 1>Tyler Clang. Brain Stuff is a production of I Heart

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<v Speaker 1>Radio's How Stuff Works. For more on Edward Burns impact

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<v Speaker 1>on our world, check out Ben's show Stuff They Don't

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<v Speaker 1>Want You To Know, And of course, for more on

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<v Speaker 1>this unless of other savory topics, visit our home planet,

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<v Speaker 1>how stuff Works dot com. Plus for more podcasts. For

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<v Speaker 1>my heart Radio, you can visit the I heart Radio app,

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<v Speaker 1>Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.

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<v Speaker 1>Two