The Chew-nited Nations
September 17, 2014 1:07 PM Subscribe
Looking at Russian Valery Nosal's collection of 25,500 chewing gum wrappers may seem like a mere curiosity, but you gotta wonder about the ethnography of chewing gum around the world. Perusing the catalog you can find the some expected regional flavors, fascination with far away places, functional over taste chews, odd promotions, and, for a Scandinavian country, a surprising disregard for sustainability. Oprah and other chiclephobes should not click.
"Chicle comes about sort of the way maple syrup does," says Deborah Schimberg, president of Glee Gum, the only U.S. gum still containing chicle. The tree's sap is collected by workers who climb the trees and use machetes to tap the sap, she says. A single tapping yields only 2.5 lb of chicle, and trees can be tapped only once every three to four years.
posted by Floydd at 1:23 PM on September 17, 2014
posted by Floydd at 1:23 PM on September 17, 2014
His Italian collection seems to be lacking Luciano Pavarotti's favorite, Edison Gum,
posted by IndigoJones at 1:44 PM on September 17, 2014
posted by IndigoJones at 1:44 PM on September 17, 2014
Oh this is so cool!
Gotta tear through that collection. I've spent the last few years looking for a brand of ginger chewing gum from Indonesia. Had some while there, looked like, well, ginger chiclets. Ohhhhh my goodness. It was ginger and pleasant and invigorating for about .05 seconds, then....Mouth.On.Fire. Total Insta-tears, Death of Tongue, Nose Snot Marathon Experience. Spit it out and wailed this is guuuuuum? to the great amusement of all.
Been looking ever since so that I could get some and share with others.
posted by barchan at 1:44 PM on September 17, 2014
Gotta tear through that collection. I've spent the last few years looking for a brand of ginger chewing gum from Indonesia. Had some while there, looked like, well, ginger chiclets. Ohhhhh my goodness. It was ginger and pleasant and invigorating for about .05 seconds, then....Mouth.On.Fire. Total Insta-tears, Death of Tongue, Nose Snot Marathon Experience. Spit it out and wailed this is guuuuuum? to the great amusement of all.
Been looking ever since so that I could get some and share with others.
posted by barchan at 1:44 PM on September 17, 2014
I seem to remember hearing about candy wrapper collections being a big thing for kids in the USSR (in the '80s maybe?), especially foreign wrappers. But I could be wrong.
posted by Kabanos at 1:51 PM on September 17, 2014
posted by Kabanos at 1:51 PM on September 17, 2014
.elyts ni kcab emoc ot gniog si ekil uoy mug tahT !swen doog tog ev'I
posted by various at 2:04 PM on September 17, 2014
posted by various at 2:04 PM on September 17, 2014
barchan, I don't suppose you subscribe to Chewing or Gum Action?
posted by Greg_Ace at 2:23 PM on September 17, 2014
posted by Greg_Ace at 2:23 PM on September 17, 2014
"After tagging along on camping trips and club outings, they discovered that kids “don’t just want a functional gum that freshens breath,” says VP and global chief marketing officer Martin Schlatter. They also see a gum brand as an expression of who they are."
These kids are apparently total assholes.
posted by klangklangston at 5:41 PM on September 17, 2014 [1 favorite]
These kids are apparently total assholes.
posted by klangklangston at 5:41 PM on September 17, 2014 [1 favorite]
to the great amusement of all.
One on my coworkers did something similar by keeping a dish of crystalized ginger on his desk next to the candy dish.
posted by Dr. Twist at 8:25 PM on September 17, 2014
One on my coworkers did something similar by keeping a dish of crystalized ginger on his desk next to the candy dish.
posted by Dr. Twist at 8:25 PM on September 17, 2014
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what?
posted by Floydd at 1:19 PM on September 17, 2014 [1 favorite]