Per capita margarine consumptionMusic CD units shipped in the US
The American margarine tub and the American music CD expired together between 2002 and 2011, and their decline moved in such harmony (r = 0.958) that it feels like a single obituary written with two different photos. Both spreadable; both replaced by superior analog products (butter, vinyl); both quietly embarrassed to still be on shelves.
Per capita margarine consumption fell from about 7 pounds in 2002 to under 4 pounds by 2011, a collapse driven first by trans fat awareness (the FDA began requiring trans fat labels in 2006) and then by the broader butter renaissance that made olive oil and grass-fed butter the cultural signals of dietary responsibility; music CD units shipped in the US fell from about 712 million to under 240 million, killed first by iTunes' 99-cent single and then by Spotify's launch. Both are stories of a previously dominant format that was displaced by a newer technology precisely when the public became educated enough to reject it — trans fats and physical media both lost in the same decade.
The tub was thrown out. The CD was ripped, then discarded. Both formats now live mostly in estate sales.
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