Contributing to global climate change since 1965, Allen believes that you have a Constitutional right to his opinion. 
Bran New
Best if used by May 1809.
I don’t eat breakfast cereal that often so it came to me as no surprise that one or more boxes in our pantry would have slipped beyond its “use by” date. I was, however, surprised to find this rather old box of Raisin Bran among our food stuffs.
Being the curious sort (many people tell me I’m “curious”), I did some digging on the interwebs and this is what I discovered after drinking a bunch of cough syrup.
Late in 1808, the Western Family Trading Company issued a special series of packages to commemorate the Treaty of the Dardanelles in January of 1809. Raisin Bran, as you probably know, was a staple commodity, popular with both British subjects (and their protectorates) and peoples inside the Ottoman Empire (and among the less known End Table Assembly of IKEA). The treaty was established to allow free trade of both breakfast cereals and bran muffins (also quite popular among the regular) between nation states to, “promote the health and well being of breakfast eaters everywhere… except for the French. <spit>”
I have no idea how one of these irreplaceable and priceless pieces of history ended up in my pantry, but I have to say they were delicious.
The More You Know! You’re welcome.
You got it just right! You know, in October of 1809, along the Natchez Trace in Tennessee, explorer Meriwether Lewis died under mysterious circumstances at an inn called Grinder’s Stand. I’m pretty sure we can conclude he got into some bad/expired raisins.
October 1st, 2008 at 9:48 pmAnd when his body was carried away, poorly secured to the cart, Lewis fell off the bran wagon. True story!
October 2nd, 2008 at 6:50 am