The space food innovation journey for Pillsbury – to create what would eventually become “Space Food Sticks” for several Apollo missions and Skylab – actually started in the early 1960s.

Howard Bauman, Pillsbury’s chief food technologist at the time, led a team at the company that created the first solid food consumed by a NASA astronaut. Scott Carpenter ate small “compressed” food cubes made by Pillsbury on board Aurora 7 in 1962.

By the way, as part of his work with NASA to make sure food was safe for astronauts, Bauman also played a key part in establishing the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) regulations used for food safety. HACCP was a significant development for the food industry. It focused on the prevention of potential food safety issues, not just inspection. It’s still used in several industries today around the world, from production and preparation to packaging and distribution.

Pillsbury began advertising the sticks on television, as Space Food Sticks, clearly making the link to the space program.

The “perfectly balanced energy snack”

The consumer version of the “perfectly balanced energy snack” was slightly modified, and a shorter version of the food sticks eaten by astronauts. They came individually-wrapped, in similar flavors to what the astronauts enjoyed, like chocolate, caramel and peanut butter.

In 1973, a modified version of the commercially available Pillsbury Food Sticks was included on the third Skylab mission, as a NASA press release indicated.