"Let's Build Muscle to Beat the Soviets": The Tumultuous Birth of Protein Snacks [Delicious Stories]

Developed Steroids to Beat the Soviets...
Disillusioned, He Left the Sports World
The First Protein Snack Sweeps Across the US
From a Weapon of System Competition
to a Modern Healthy Snack

Editor's NoteThe earliest snacks are believed to have originated in ancient Mesopotamian civilization. In other words, snacks have accompanied every moment of human history. From biscuits and chocolate to ice cream, we bring you delicious stories behind the snacks we love.

From chocolate bars to ice cream, there is a growing craze for "protein snacks" that reduce calories and increase protein content. Although they are now consumed as health foods, protein products were actually one of the weapons in the system competition between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War in the 1950s. This is because they were used as muscle enhancers for American athletes who had to outperform Soviet competitors.

Developed Steroids to Beat the Soviets... Disillusioned, He Left the Sports World

1950s American newspaper advertisement for synthetic protein powder 'High Protein.' Online archive capture

The person who developed the first modern protein powder was John Bosley Ziegler, an American bodybuilder and nutritionist. Dr. Ziegler was a World War II veteran and a survivor who witnessed the horrors of the Pacific War. After the war, he became entangled in the US-Soviet system rivalry. In the early 1950s, Dr. Ziegler worked as a nutritionist for the US national weightlifting team, and at that time, he was focused on finding ways to increase the muscle mass of American athletes.

In this process, Dr. Ziegler created the concept of a supplement by developing synthetic protein powder. In 1954, he also heard rumors that Soviet athletes were injecting testosterone (a male hormone) to increase muscle mass, which inspired him to invent a muscle enhancer called "Dianabol." Dianabol was the world's first steroid drug, and while it rapidly increased the strength of athletes regardless of gender, it also came with terrible side effects.

Dr John Bosley Ziegler. Screenshot from the website 'Starting Strength'

The 1950s and 1960s, when Dr. Ziegler was active, were the peak of the Cold War system rivalry. The confrontation between the two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union, extended even to sports, and driven by the desperation to defeat the Soviets, American athletes sometimes took steroid doses 20 times higher than the prescribed amount. No matter how much Dr. Ziegler warned about the side effects, it was to no avail. Eventually, in 1971, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) designated steroids as a banned substance.

After realizing that the drug he developed had put athletes in danger, Dr. Ziegler eventually withdrew from the sports world. In a 1972 interview with the American science magazine "Science," he said, "Steroids have spread across America like a drug," and expressed regret, saying, "If I could go back, I would erase what I did."

The First Protein Snack Sweeps Across the US

However, another invention left by Dr. Ziegler?synthetic protein powder?became extremely popular among not only athletes but also the general public, leading to mass production. This was thanks to Bob Hoffman, a weightlifter managed by Dr. Ziegler and a famous bodybuilder.

Hoffman fully leveraged his fame from sports to launch various businesses, including exercise equipment, fitness magazines, and health foods. In particular, he put great effort into selling protein powder. In the early 1950s, athletes often mistook the effects of steroids for those of protein powder and were obsessed with increasing their protein intake. In this context, when Hoffman released his special protein powder "Hi-Protein," marketing it as the "secret to muscle growth," the product sold out rapidly.

A snack made with high protein synthetic protein powder, High Protein Fudge. Facebook capture

Encouraged by his success, Hoffman embarked on a new project: adding Hi-Protein, which had only been sold in powder form, to bread, snacks, and other foods. Unlike Dr. Ziegler, Hoffman lacked professional nutritional knowledge and developed products in a trial-and-error fashion, so Hi-Protein was notorious for its foul smell and strange texture. To neutralize the unpleasant taste and increase accessibility, Hoffman put Hi-Protein into sweet snacks. As a result, the world's first protein snack, "Hi-Protein Fudge," was born.

From a Weapon of System Competition to a Modern Healthy Snack

After the success of Hi-Protein Fudge, large food companies joined the development of protein products, and the supplement market expanded dramatically. Today, protein snacks are as common as regular bread and snack products. Moreover, as they appeal to consumers seeking both health and taste, their growth rate is accelerating even further.

According to data from the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation, the domestic protein market grew from about 80 billion KRW in 2018 to about 450 billion KRW in 2023, a fivefold increase over five years. The US protein food market reached $12 billion (about 16.679 trillion KRW) last year, and it is expected to grow to $26 billion (about 36.137 trillion KRW) by 2033.

Although protein powder was originally invented as a secret weapon, alongside steroids, to defeat Soviet athletes, it has now become a representative healthy snack enjoyed by people of all ages. While Dr. Ziegler may have left behind the stigma of being the "inventor of steroids," he also left a legacy that is no less significant.