In 1914, Clarence Birdseye was a 28-year-old American fur trader working in Labrador. One day, he noticed that fish caught when he was ice fishing would freeze stiff the instant they were exposed to the air. Yet, weeks later, when defrosted and cooked, they tasted almost fresh. That caused Birdseye to think, "Why not flash freeze other foods?" So the New Yorker began experimenting, and the "frozen foods" industry was born.