Well, let's step back a bit into a little quick history. Did you know that people have been chewing gum since the early 1900s? The Aztec and Mayan civilizations in southern America started chewing thousands of years ago from resin saps of spruce trees. The "chicle" derived from the sapodilla tree before the thought of the gum candy idea ever came to mind. Their reason to gnaw on this sap substance was to slake thirst or delay hunger and even freshen teeth. Sounds good, doesn't it.
So it all started when the chicle was brought from Mexico to the US by a former president, General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. He was exiled to New York, where he met American amateur inventor Thomas Adams. The initial idea of the chicle use was a new rubber substitute for tires because it was so expensive back then. They even tried to vulcanize the chicle as Charles Goodyear did with rubber, but somehow it didn't quite work out the way they had planned.
The masterminds of gum
One day, Thomas Adams went to a candy store. They discovered that kids were really into paraffin wax gums named the State of Maine Pure Spruce Gum, which was commercially made by John B. Curtis, who constructed the first-ever stick-type chewing gum factory in Maine, USA. The paraffin wax gum was sold by cutting gum into strips. The gum was odorless, colorless, and tasteless, but many children were great fans. Word has it that chewers prepared powdered sugar, and they would dip the gum in the powder to keep it sweet when chewed. Thomas Adams then thought about his chicle becoming the main ingredient in the gum and how to make it a better type of wax gum and sold them by the name Adams New York Chewing Gum. After years of producing different kinds of gum, such as the licorice-flavored Black Jack, Adams noticed an imitator who grew peppermint-flavored candy-coated gum made into cubes called chiclets on the market. Thomas Adams was aware of a good sales opportunity and patented a machine that could produce massive amounts of chicle chewing gum. Later he founded a company named American Chicle Company; he's the guy who owns the chiclets brand chewing gum. Years later, William Wrigley, who was very good at advertising, found a way of selling his products all around America and outmatched many of his competitors. Wrigley is known for its successful worldwide gum brands like Juicy Fruit and Wrigley's Spearmint.
![The masterminds of gum]( "The masterminds of gum")
So does the gum base contain rubber?
By the 1960s, the gum base used in chewing gum did not contain any "real" rubber from chicle. Instead, they use artificial rubber-like substances to mimic the original chicle tree sap elasticity, such as gum base. This switch was because sapodilla trees (that make the chicle substance) can only be harvested once the tree is around 20 years old, and only about a kilogram of gum sap per tapping can be obtained. So that wasn't economic; the main point was that it was cheaper to manufacture. The shortage of chicle then leads chewing gum manufacturers to produce synthetic modern-day gum bases that we chew on now in chewing gum. This is essential as the sapodilla tree originates from southern American soil. Using the sapodilla tree saps for chewing gum production will wipe out thousands of hectares of sapodilla trees which would be environmentally unfriendly.
Modern gum base is made from different kinds of synthetic materials.
The rubbery-like and non-digestible ingredient makes gum so chewy and flexible. They make it enjoyable to chew until it eventually runs out of flavor. The chewing gum was designed to be chewed on for a brief period without being swallowed. Our bodies can't digest foreign ingredients because of these synthetic materials in the gum base. The substances in soft yet durable chewing gum substances are composed of gum base, which is added with plasticizers and softeners, different colors, and vibrant flavors. Some include candy coating in their gum products. So this is why the texture does become reminiscent of that of rubber because the properties and, most likely, the resin component are a primary contributor to making chewing gum elastic similar to plastic, chewy (most definitely), and sticky. We consumers enjoy these characteristics, which sell pretty well on the market.
The gum base used in different manufacturers has different ingredient formulations. The three main components that make all gum bases are composed of
elastomer, which causes gum flexible. Then there is a
resin that creates a durable chewy sensation. Lastly,
wax gives it a soft feel when chewed on in the beginning. This is why the gum base resembles plastic and rubber. When mixed with intensive sweeteners, the intention is to keep a more prolonged sweetness effect and delay flavor release. Glycerin is also combined with gum base to maintain the moistness when it meets saliva in our mouths. Colors also play an essential role in giving it that desire for us to purchase.
Sticks, tablets, cubes, chunks, colorful hollow balls? What's your favorite? Gum even comes in slabs or pellet and pillow shapes. What else will they think of, slime gum? Manufacturers are going out of their way to produce this sticky product. Whatever your appeal, always be sure to spit them out responsibly!
Author: Wuxi Gum Base
Publication Date: 3/10/2022
