MUSEO DE LA REVOLUCIÓN INDUSTRIAL

The Industrial Revolution Museum is housed in what was once the Liebig Extract of Meat Company (1863-1924) and the Frigorífico Anglo (1924-1979). Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2015, it allows visitors to understand the considerable impact this factory had on food processing and the export of products around the world. Some historians consider that its arrival in the region marked the beginning of the industrial revolution in the Río de la Plata. It was even here that the first electric light bulb in Uruguay was lit, on August 10, 1883, three years before the one in Montevideo. Known as "the great kitchen of the world", the Liebig Extract of Meat Company was founded in 1863 by the Belgian engineer George Giebert, who used the technique patented by the German chemist Justus von Liebig to launch his project for the production of meat extracts. Liebig, although he never set foot in Uruguay, served as the company's scientific director until his death in 1873. During his career, he developed the technique for preserving corned beef in cans and Oxo broth cubes. These products quickly became indispensable elements of popular cuisine throughout Europe, whereas meat had previously been considered a luxury item for working-class people. They became so famous that Jules Verne chose them as the breakfast for the characters in his famous novel From the Earth to the Moon, published in 1865. In 1924, the company was bought by the British group Vestey, which renamed it Frigorífico Anglo del Uruguay. During the 1930s, the slaughterhouse was able to process up to 1,500 cows per day, in addition to thousands of sheep, pigs and chickens, which were then processed, packaged and sent to the four corners of the world. At its peak, the plant had a workforce of 4,000 employees, slaughtering as many as 6,000 animals a day. However, it failed to adapt to the changes in the industry in the second half of the ^20th century and was forced to close in the 1970s. Today, Fray Bentos meat pies and meatballs are still available from the Fray Bentos brand, now owned by the Scottish Baxters Group. This visit could be the most historically significant moment of your trip.