The Market for Meat Booms with the Invention of the Refrigerator
- Date Range
- 1870 – 1920
- Title
- The Market for Meat Booms with the Invention of the Refrigerator
- What occurred
- The Industry for meat within America had been growing at a substantial rate ever since the first livestock arrived with European settlers. As population exponentially grew, so did the need for more livestock to support the new masses of people. The major issue that stood in the way was shipping the meat without it going bad. Previous methods were successful, but none more successful and impactful than the refrigerator. The first refrigeration system used in the meat packing industry was in Chicago during the year 1900. Within fifteen years, every meat packing company had refrigerators. This invention provided the ability to store meat safely for much longer which gave the packing companies security if they overhauled production to much. Unfortunately, it did not and the horrifying 1900's Chicago meat packing industry took off. This required more trains, more livestock, more workers, more fossil fuels, and more chemicals. All of these factors lead to significant environmental damage of water, the soil, and the atmosphere.
- Location
- Union Stockyards Chicago, Il 60609
- Image Citation
- https://www.lib.niu.edu/2006/iht1320636.html, https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.goodreads.com%2Fbook%2Fshow%2F41681.The_Jungle&psig=AOvVaw0u9j-G8SxSvdmmyj3LI1JE&ust=1632421077376000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCMDdx8qYk_MCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAU, https://www.materials.sandvik/en/campaigns/fridge-of-the-future/the-history-of-the-refrigerator/, https://www.livescience.com/57797-refrigerator-history.html
- Student name(s)
- Jackson Selent