Canadian food that went to space with Artemis II

The historic Artemis II mission had 189 unique food and beverage items on board to nourish the four-member crew. Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen and NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch went on a 10-day lunar flyby mission that set a record for the longest distance humans have been from Earth.

The Artemis II mission menu included five Canadian food products, more than 10 types of beverages, five different hot sauces, tortillas, vegetables, fruits, cookies, etc.

The food and beverages had to be safe, shelf-stable, and easy to prepare as well as consume in NASA’s Orion spacecraft. NASA selected the food items in co-ordination with space food experts and the crew to balance calorie needs, hydration, and nutrient intake while accommodating individual preferences. The Canadian Space Agency helped NASA and the Artemis crew in selecting the Canadian products.

This was reportedly the first time commercially produced Canadian food has travelled beyond low Earth orbit.

The five products that made the trip were:

In a media statement, Goldy’s explained, the company undertook a months-long collaboration with the Canadian Space Agency and NASA to test and evaluate their products’ shelf life, microbiological safety, nutritional value, and performance in microgravity conditions to see if it could make the journey to space. They’re thrilled their Strawberry Lavender Superseed cereal was selected for the Mission.

“This is more than a food story – it’s a uniquely Canadian moment,” said Daniel Schneider, co-founder & CEO of Goldys, in the statement. “As the world watches this week’s landing and looks ahead to future lunar missions, we’re proud to see a Canadian product playing a small but meaningful role in fuelling human space exploration.”