"An army marches with its stomach." The tin can and Napoleon Bonaparte
The success story of the tin can began in France in 1795 with Napoleon Bonaparte and a tender he initiated: anyone who could develop a way of preserving food for longer and thus reliably supply military troops was to receive 12,000 francs. Until then, the troops on their campaigns depended on the success of their military activities: only what was captured and "plundered" could be consumed. Accordingly, soldiers were killed more often by spoiled food, malnutrition or undernourishment than in combat. "An army marches with its stomach," Napoleon is said to have said.