Changes in diet over the Years

Britain is an island between the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. No one in England lives more than 120 km (75 miles) from the sea. For people living near the sea, fish and shellfish have always been popular foods.

Away from the sea, people first ate wild animals, but then hundreds of years ago they began keeping sheep, cows and chickens on farms. Farmers have grown fruit, vegetables and cereals (for bread making) for centuries too.

During the Middle Ages (11th to 15th Century), Ships brought sugar, nuts and spices from far away. The spices were often used to hide the taste of the food which was going bad! When sailors went to foreign places they bought back more kinds of food.

When fridges and freezes were invented, people could keep food much longer.

What food was "invented" or discovered in England?

1762: The sandwich was invented in England.

We have a town named Sandwich in the south of England. John Montagu, the Earl of Sandwich invented a small meal that could be eaten with one hand while he continued his nonstop gambling.

1902: Marmite was invented in England.

Marmite is dark brown-coloured savoury spread made from the yeast that is a by-product of the brewing industry. It has a very strong, slightly salty flavour. It is definitely a love-it-or-hate-it type of food.

HP Sauce was invented in England at the end of the 19th century by Mr FG Garton, a Nottingham grocer. He was down on his luck and couldn't pay his bills, so when Edwin Samson Moore, owner of the Midland Vinegar Company, offered to cancel his debt with the company and pay him £150 for the recipe, plus the use of the name HP, Garton jumped at the chance.

Moore had been looking around for some time for a sauce to manufacture and market. He liked both the taste and the name of Garton's HP Sauce, which had an appropriately patriotic ring to it. The HP stood for Houses of Parliament, as it was rumoured that the sauce had been seen gracing the tables of one of the dining rooms there.

Worcestershire Sauce (Worcester Sauce)

1837 John Lea and William Perrins of Worcester, England started manufacturing Worcester Sauce (Worcestershire).

Worcester sauce was originally an Indian recipe, brought back to Britain by Lord Marcus Sandys, ex-Governor of Bengal. He asked two chemists, John Lea and William Perrins, to make up a batch of sauce from his recipe.

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