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BillTowne t1_j1rafls wrote

Your description sounds like wheat flakes were invented by accident, but not corn flakes.

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greed-man OP t1_j1risso wrote

Yes. They developed flaking by accident. They tried marketing wheat flakes, it did okay, but not great, but when they developed corn flakes, the process became the dominant method for many cereals. Years later, after the success of Wheaties, Kellogg's circled back to wheat flakes with Pep in 1924, and then "fortified" them with vitamins starting in 1930.

Wheaties, in turn, had been developed also by accident, when a plant worker spilled a wheat mixture on a hot stove. They played with many different formulations, finally got what they wanted, and named it Washburn's Gold Medal Whole Wheat Flakes. The name was changed to Wheaties later, after an in-house contest for the best name.

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