Congress banned onion futures in 1958 after a commodities scandal.

Evidence

At the Merc, Leo Melamed had seen the trade in egg futures collapse, and onion futures were banned by Congress in August 1958 after one of the periodic scandals that rocked the commodities futures markets. In 1961, the Merc launched a futures contract on frozen pork bellies, and other futures on meat followed. They formed a viable market one that was later to come to wider attention when Hillary Rodham Clinton’s success in the 1970s speculating in the Merc’s cattle futures was scrutinized’ but Melamed knew that “a oneproduct line was a very dangerous way for an exchange to live.” As he rose to leadership of the Mere, he explored the possibility of futures on other commodities such as shrimp, potatoes, apples, and turkeys (Melamed interview). — Donald MacKenzie, An Engine, Not a Camera, 633

Categorization

• CANDY: The delightful irony — Congress passing a law against onion futures — is an easy conversation tidbit.
• XREF: Melamed’s ‘one-product line is dangerous’ diversification logic parallels the reader’s interest in institutional diversification and resilience.