Cheese puffs are probably much older than you think, and their creation was entirely accidental. If you love cheese puffs, you actually have livestock to thank for them.

The story begins with the Flakall Corporation in Beloit, Wisconsin, an animal feed manufacturer that made its product by grinding corn to make it easier for animals to digest.

Since the grinder had a tendency to clog, one of the solutions was to instead run moistened corn through the machine, the heat of which caused the kernels to puff up.

One experiment with cheese flavoring later and the first cheese puff was born. Flakell eventually formed the Adams Corporation to manufacture the

new product.