Nescafe, launched by Nestle in 1938, was the first successful instant coffee [MOMENT/GETTY]
1. A form of instant coffee had been developed in England in 1771 but it had the problem of going rancid after a relatively short time.
2. David Strang also received a New Zealand patent for “soluble dry coffee powder” around 1890 but it may not have tasted very nice.
3. The first mass-produced instant coffee, called Red E Coffee, was produced in 1909 by Belgian-American George Constant Louis Washington.
4. During the First World War, US soldiers called their coffee “a cup of George”.
5. Nescafe, the first truly successful instant coffee, was launched by Nestlé in 1938.
6. Instant coffee accounts for 13 per cent of all coffee drunk worldwide.
7. Most instant coffee is made from Robusta beans grown in Vietnam.
8. In 2012, Canadian Masen Kankula claimed a world record by eating a tablespoon of Maxwell House granules in 8.61 seconds.
9. 74 per cent of UK adults drink instant coffee.
10. The world spent more than $30billion (£18billion) on instant coffee last year.
