National Chewing Gum Day



September 30th is National Chewing Gum Day. The concept has a long history, beginning about 4,000 BC. Evidence of chewing gum made from birch bark tar dates back to the Nordic Period in Finland. The Maya and the Aztec in Mexico use chicle, another tree gum, and Chiclets Gum today gets its name from this substance. Even the Greeks chewed mastic, a gum from the mastic tree. Many other early cultures also had a form of chewing gum.

However, the development of the flavored chewing gum we know today came largely in the United States. In 1848, John B. Curtis sold the first commercial chewing gum called "The State of Maine Pure Spruce Gum." It was made from the sap of spruce trees. When paraffin wax was manufactured around 1850, it became more popular. The waxy chewing gum was sweetened by repeated dipping it in powdered sugar. The first flavored chewing gum was developed in the 1860s by John Colgan, a pharmacist in Louisville, Kentucky. He called it "Taffy Tolu." 

Thomas Adams began marketing Adams New York Chewing Gum in 1871. His gum was made out of chicle from Mexico. The market for chewing gum increased even more with Black Jack (a licorice-flavored gum) in 1884, Chiclets in 1899, and Wrigley's Spearmint Gum. By World War II the market was flourishing, and troops were given chewing gum as part of their meal rations. By the 1960s U.S. manufacturers had switched to a synthetic rubber-based gum because it was cheaper to produce. 

So, now that you know some of the history of chewing gum, let's celebrate the day by enjoying a stick and sharing the pack with others. Just remember to dispose of it in the trash to prevent future sticky situations.

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