When the bread slicing machine was invented in the 1920s in the US it was initially met with some scepticism by consumers.

But it is a huge success story – within five years of that first slicing machine being used in a Missouri bakery it is estimated that 80% of bread sold in the US was pre-sliced.

It was so successful that it became the subject of a phrase. Who hasn't heard: 'This is the best thing since sliced bread'?

So what does it take to invent such game-changing ideas and make them succeed? Is it genius, luck, or are they somehow just inevitable as society develops?

There are so many remarkable food industry innovations to look back at.  

In this episode of the Food Matters Live podcast, we pick out the very best from the last 100 years or so.

Guests:
Neil Buttery, Evolutionary Biologist and Food Historian
Dr Morgaine Gaye - Food Futurologist