Origin and history of foodstuff

Middle English foode, fode, from Old English foda "food, nourishment; fuel," also figurative, from Proto-Germanic *fodon (source also of Swedish föda, Danish föde, Gothic fodeins), from Germanic *fod- "food," from PIE *pat-, extended form of root *pa- "to feed."

Food chain is by 1915. Food poisoning attested by 1864; food processor in the kitchen appliance sense from 1973; food stamp (n.) is from 1962.

early 14c., stuffe, "quilted material worn under chain mail," from Old French estoffe "quilted material, furniture, provisions" (Modern French étoffe), from estoffer "to equip or stock," which is of obscure origin; according to French sources it is from Old High German stopfon "to plug, stuff," or from a related Frankish word (see stop (v.)), but OED finds this "open to strong objections."

The sense was extended to material for working with in various trades (c. 1400), also "military stores and supplies" (early 15c.), then "goods or possessions generally, movable property" (mid-15c.), also "provisions or articles of food."

As a general designation for "substance or matter of an unspecified kind, physical or abstract" it is attested by mid-15c. It is by 1550s in the figurative sense of "what a person is 'made of;' " the sense of "substance (physical or abstract) of which a thing is made or consists" is by 1580s.

From 1570s as "worthless ideas," often in stuff and nonsense (by 1749, Fielding). The meaning "narcotic, dope, drug" is attested from 1929. To know (one's) stuff "have a grasp on a subject" is recorded from 1927.