Juicy Fruit facts for kids
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| Website | http://www.juicyfruit.com/ |
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Juicy Fruit is a well-known chewing gum brand from America. It is made by the Wrigley Company, which is part of a larger company called Mars, Incorporated. Juicy Fruit gum was first sold way back in 1893. Today, almost everyone in America knows its name.
Contents
About Juicy Fruit Gum
What Does Juicy Fruit Taste Like?
The exact fruit flavor of Juicy Fruit gum is a bit of a mystery! Advertisements don't say exactly what fruit it tastes like. However, some people think it tastes like a mix of banana and pineapple. Others say it reminds them of jackfruit. Some books even suggest that peach is one of the important flavors in the gum.
Scientists believe the main chemical used for the flavor is called isoamyl acetate. This chemical is also found naturally in jackfruit and is sometimes called "banana oil."
Who Chews Juicy Fruit?
Most people who buy Juicy Fruit gum are younger than 20 years old. Kids between three and eleven years old are the biggest fans. However, about 40% of the gum is bought by people who are 20 years old or older.
Sean Payton, a famous football coach for the Denver Broncos, is known for asking for Juicy Fruit during games!
What's in Juicy Fruit Gum?
Juicy Fruit gum is mostly made of sugar and a special gum base. It also contains corn syrup and dextrose, which are natural sweeteners. Other ingredients include natural and artificial flavors. Glycerol and lecithin are added to make the gum soft. Artificial sweeteners like aspartame and acesulfame K are also used. Yellow Lake 5 gives it color, and BHT helps keep it fresh.
In the UK, the ingredients are similar. They include sugar, gum base, and glucose syrup. Flavorings, a humectant (glycerol), and an emulsifier (soybean lecithin) are also used. Sweeteners like acesulfame K and sucralose are added. Finally, an antioxidant (BHA) helps preserve the gum.
The History of Juicy Fruit
When William Wrigley Jr. started his business in Chicago, he first sold his father's soap. To get people to buy the soap, he gave away free baking powder. People liked the baking powder more than the soap! So, he started selling baking powder instead.
In 1892, Wrigley Jr. decided to give away something new with his baking powder: a few sticks of chewing gum. Again, the free gift was more popular than the main product! The chewing gum became a huge hit.
Because of this, William Wrigley Jr. changed his business to focus on chewing gum. In 1893, he launched a brand new flavor called Juicy Fruit. This new gum helped the Wrigley Company become one of the most successful chewing gum companies in the world.
When Juicy Fruit first came out, its wrapper was very simple. It was plain with "JUICY FRUIT" written in red letters. In 1914, the wrapper changed to thin white and green stripes. It had "Wrigley's Juicy Fruit Chewing Gum" in the middle of a special emblem.
During World War II, Juicy Fruit gum was temporarily taken off store shelves for regular people. This was because ingredients were hard to get. Also, the gum was needed for soldiers' food rations. When the war ended, Juicy Fruit came back to the public. The striped wrapper was replaced with a bright yellow one. The name "Juicy Fruit" was placed between two chevron shapes. These shapes were meant to look like the "Wrigley arrow" used for Wrigley's Spearmint gum.
The bright yellow wrapper has stayed mostly the same into the 2000s. Since 2002, the chevron shapes have changed to look like the corners of a long smile under the brand name. Juicy Fruit is still very popular today.
In 2003, in the United States, Wrigley's changed Juicy Fruit's recipe. They replaced some of the sugar with two artificial sweeteners: aspartame and Acesulfame potassium.
A song called "Grapefruit—Juicy Fruit" was written and sung by Jimmy Buffett. It came out in 1973 on his album A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean. It was a popular song on the radio.
Juicy Fruit is also mentioned in the 1983 song "Juicy Fruit" by Mtume. In the 1980s, many TV commercials for Juicy Fruit had a catchy jingle that ended with: "the taste, the taste, the taste is gonna move ya!"
In 2022, Juicy Fruit was no longer sold in Germany and Austria. Other famous Wrigley's flavors, like Wrigley's Spearmint, were also stopped there.
External Links
- Juicy Fruit official Facebook page: http://www.juicyfruit.com/
- Juicy Fruit on Wrigley.com
de:The Wrigley Company#Juicy Fruit
