posted 08-18-2007 03:05 PM               

Canadian cookies in space

Canadian Space Agency astronaut Dave Williams and his STS-118 crew members have been enjoying some Canadian foods including Canasnacks.

Canasnacks, bite-sized cookies with maple, cranberry or blueberry cream filling, are the first Canadian food developed by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) specifically for astronauts.

The Canasnacks were designed to meet the specific requirements of spaceflight:

• Low amount of crumbs: in the microgravity environment, uncontained crumbs and dry foods such as powders can contaminate the environment. The Canasnacks are bite-sized to decrease the production of crumbs.

• Shelf-stable: there are no refrigeration or freezer capabilities for food on orbit so the food must have a shelf life that will last for at least the duration of the mission. Canasnacks are vacuum packed to ensure a long shelf life.

Each package of Canasnacks contains five different flavors:

• Oatmeal biscuit with cranberry cream filling
  
• Oatmeal biscuit with maple cream filling
  
• Oatmeal and honey biscuit with blueberry cream filling
  
• Oatmeal biscuit (sweet and salty) with blueberry cream filling
  
• Oatmeal biscuit with blueberry cream filling (cream has higher acidity)

According to AAFC, Canasnacks were developed using ingredients that are representative of Canada:

• Maple sugar: Canada is the world leader in the production of maple products
  
• Cranberries: one of the native fruits of Canada
  
• Blueberries: one of the native fruits of Canada
  
• Canola oil: a product of canola. Canola was developed in Canada and is now widely used around the world.
  
• Oats: Canada is the world leader in the development of new varieties of oats.
  
• Lactulose: the only producer of lactulose (prebiotic) in North America is located in Quebec.

Each Canasnacks package bears a maple leaf logo.

posted 08-18-2007 03:27 PM               

Dave Williams, STS-118 mission specialist representing the Canadian Space Agency, eats a Canasnack on the middeck of Endeavour.

posted 11-12-2007 08:00 AM               

Popularity skyrocketed after their development last spring, much to the surprise, delight and frustration of creator Ted Farnworth. He concocted them on short notice, making enough for Canadian astronaut Dave Williams to take one package for each member of August's mission to the International Space Station on the shuttle Endeavour.

Demand has since overwhelmed the research group created to produce healthy foods for space travellers, under an agreement made two years ago between the space agency and Agriculture Canada.

A news conference held right after Williams ate his cookies in space led to requests from the agriculture department and the Prime Minister's Office to taste the treats. When 10,000 more were sought for a public launch at the winter fair, Farnworth drew the line, though he was able to supply some samples.

"We didn't know this was going to happen," he says. "We didn't get into the cookie business. This was a research project. They are being made individually by hand, one at a time, so it's really labour-intensive. I had to take two people off my research project last week to make cookies."

posted 07-01-2010 08:23 AM               

About a dozen packages of Canasnacks made their way up to the space station and into the hands of astronauts.

When Williams tasted the cookies, he described them as "a little bite that was out of this world."

As a result of the public's interest in Canasnacks, efforts were made to commercialize the product, which contained a total of 152 calories for the package of five cookies.

A CSA spokeswoman says a few companies expressed interest, but plans to market the Canasnacks never went any further.