From Gangster to Groceries

Al Capone, infamous for running Chicago’s criminal underworld during Prohibition, is also tied to a surprisingly wholesome idea: expiration dates. During Prohibition, Al Capone ran one of the most powerful bootlegging operations in the United States, controlling speakeasies, breweries, and illegal liquor distribution across Chicago. When alcohol was outlawed, Capone quietly diversified into legal businesses that used the same trucks, routes, and distribution networks his bootlegging empire had perfected—one of them being milk.

Milk delivery turned out to be a natural extension of organized crime logistics. It required cold storage, fast delivery, and neighborhood-by-neighborhood control, all things Capone already dominated. By moving into the milk industry, he was able to repurpose his bootlegging infrastructure while presenting himself as a businessman concerned with public welfare rather than crime. When Capone expanded into the milk business, concerns arose after children became sick from spoiled milk. To reassure parents and protect consumers, he supported labeling bottles with clear dates indicating freshness.

While Capone didn’t officially invent expiration dates, his influence helped push the practice into wider use during the 1930s. It’s a bizarre twist of history—where a notorious gangster played a role in shaping a basic food-safety standard we still rely on today.

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