Two Australians bought a hamburger from McDonald’s in 1995. But instead of eating it, they decided to keep it to see how it developed. Find out what he looks like 30 years later!
For years, rumors have circulated about the exceptional durability of McDonald’s products. They claim that their burgers can remain almost unchanged for years, without molding or decaying like fresh food normally does. Curious, many individuals and researchers have attempted experiments and observations to verify the claims. And the palm of gold for the oldest burger goes to two Australians.
In 1995, when they were still teenagers, two men, Casey Dean and Eduards Nits, decided to buy a hamburger from McDonald’s, but not for their next meal. Rather than devour their Quarter Pounder, they made the surprising decision to keep it and see what it would become over time. Needless to say, they were far from suspecting that it would become one of the most famous meals on the planet!
Indeed, it turns out that the hamburger remained in relatively identical condition to that in which it was at the time of its purchase. Although it has shrunk a bit from its original size, its shape remains intact. Even more surprising: no mold has grown on it and it doesn’t even smell bad! Even the sesame seeds are still there, although some have eventually disappeared. The longevity of the burger is all the more impressive given that it spent most of its life enclosed in a cardboard and wooden box. He spent more than a decade in a sweltering Adelaide shed, where temperatures regularly exceed 30 degrees Celsius in summer.
But then, what is the secret to such longevity? Some say the high salt and preservative content of McDonald’s products plays a key role in preventing the growth of bacteria and mold. For its part, the fast-food chain indicated that the reason why their hamburgers sometimes do not mold when left at room temperature and in a dry environment is that once the food is cooked, it does not There is no longer enough moisture to support bacterial growth and break them down.
This 1995 burger may be the oldest known McDonald’s hamburger in the world, surpassing the famous cheeseburger, dating back around ten years, which is displayed in a glass display case in Iceland and is filmed live in front of thousands of viewers. However, this record is still disputed. In 2020, Utah resident David Whipple claimed to have the burger “the oldest in the world” after revealing a McDonald’s hamburger dating from 1999, which also seemed to still come straight from the grill.