Product type | Roasted grain beverage |
---|---|
Owner | Post Holdings |
Country | U.S. |
Introduced | 1895[1] |
Website | postum.com |
Postum (US: /ˈpoʊstəm/) is a powdered roasted grain beverage popular as a coffee substitute. The caffeine-free beverage was created by Post Cereal Company founder C. W. Post in 1895 and marketed as a healthier alternative to coffee.[2]: 93 Post was a student of John Harvey Kellogg, who believed that caffeine was unhealthy. Post Cereal Company eventually became General Foods, then merged to Kraft Foods Inc. in 1990. Eliza's Quest Foods now owns the trademark rights and secret recipe of Postum.
The "instant" drink mix version was developed in 1912, replacing the original brewed beverage.[3] Postum is made from roasted wheat bran and molasses. In addition to the original flavor, coffee-flavored and cocoa-flavored versions have been introduced.