556 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



May 1, 1921 



The American Chewing Gum hidustry 



Origin and Extent 



THE CHICLE CHEWING GUM BUSINESS foriTis ail interesting 

 chapter in American industrial development. Its beginning 

 dates back less than 60 years. 

 Previous to that time those who chewed gum used for the pur- 

 pose lumps of native spruce resin or preparations of sweetened 



of the Industry 



American Chicle Co. 



Fig. 1. Plant of the American Chicle Co., Long Island City, 

 New York. 



paraffine wax and oil-softened resin sold in the form of con- 

 venient sticks. 



The American habit of gum chewing is rapidly extending in 

 other countries, notably among the populations of the South Amer- 

 ican countries, Australia, New Zealand, and in lesser degree in 

 England and France. It is authoritatively reported that the out- 

 put of chewing gum was greater in 1920 than in any previous 

 year, the weight of the finished product being estimated at 40,000 

 short tons. 



The use of chewing gum is regarded as a liarmless relief for 

 nervous tension, making concentration of attention easier, and for 

 that reason the United States War Department ordered chewing 

 gum listed as a ration and distributed to American soldiers during 

 the European war. This fact served to advertise and extend the 

 habit of its use among the peoples of England, France and 

 Belgium. 



In 1860 Thomas Adams recognized the perfect suitability of 

 chicle as a base for chewing gum and he began manufacturing 

 the first chicle gum on a total investment, it is reported, of $55. 

 The product at once became popular because chicle not only 

 chews easily and satisfactorily but compounds readily with sugar 

 and flavorings into a pleasant confection. 



In its half-century of growth the chicle chewing gum industry 

 has made phenomenal progress and at |)rcsent ranks among the 

 big American industries. The manufactured output in 1920 was 

 valued at $57,000,000, representing a retail business of $100,000,000. 

 By resort lo well-planned advertising methods the sale of chewing 

 gum is bemg converted from a seasonal to an all-year business. 



The success of the company that originated this industry sub- 

 sequently led to the formation of the American Chicle Co., the 

 most extensive chewing gum organization in the world. This 

 company imports over three-quarters of the chicle entering the 

 American market, which is practically the only one for chicle. 

 Collections arc made from the company's forest concessions of 



5,000,000 acres in Southern Mexico, Guatemala and British 

 1 londuras. 



Table I gives the importations of crude chicle into the United 

 States by fiscal years from 1906-1907 to 1920. Practically the total 



Table I 

 United Staters Import.xtions or Crude Chicle 



Fiscal Year Founds Fiscal Year 



I906-19O7 6,732,581 



1907-1908 6,089,607 



19081909 5,450,139 



19091910 6,793,821 



1910-1911 6,508,208 



1911-1912 7,782,005 



1912-1913 13,758,592 



1913-1914 8,040,891 



Founds 



1914-1915 6,499,664 



1915-1916 7.3-16,969 



1916-1917 7,440,022 



1917-1918 6,408,093 



•1918 4,645,761 



tl919 9,445,538 



tl920 9,859,788 



"Tulv 1 to December 31. 



tCalendar year, 

 supply is Utilized by the American chewing gum industry. The 

 supply, however, has in recent years been inadequate to meet 

 the demand and prices have increased, although at present the 

 price has receded from the high level. These conditions led to the 

 exploration for new areas of forest in search of chicle-bearing 

 trees, and may ultimately lead to a chicle plantation industry. 



CHEWING GUM INGREDIENTS 



CHICLE 



Chicle is a resinr us gum derived from the milky latex of 

 the Nispero (Acliras sapola), an 

 evergreen tree which grows 

 abundantly in the warm, damp 

 forests of Southern Mexico, 

 Yucatan, Central America, Brit- 

 ish Honduras and adjacent 

 South American countries. Some 

 interesting authoritative infor- 

 mation on the chicle industry has 

 recently been pnlilished' from 

 which the botanical data and the 

 information on collection and 

 preparation is quoted. 



Although the bulk of the 

 world's supply of chicle comes 

 from Mexico and British Hon- 

 duras, nearly all the central and 

 tropical South American repub- 

 lics are chicle producers, several 

 of the latter having come into 

 prominence only during the last 

 lew years. 



While the true chicle is produced by the Nispero tree, the 

 chicle exploited in Colombia is derived from a different source, as 

 is probably also that obtained in the neighboring republics. The 

 exact botanical origin of the Colombian chicle is a matter of 

 some doubt, but it appears to be a species of Couma. This genus 

 belongs to Apocy>iacece, a family containing many economic plants 

 of importance, including several rubber-yielding trees and vines. 



The botanical source of chicle in the different South American 

 countries is apparently not known, but it is not improbable that 

 the tree may be a species of Couma, as the Colombian chicle 

 tree appears to be. 



As compared with the Mexican chicle, the Colombian contains 

 more resin and less gutta, namely, 83.2 per cent resin and 5.5 per 

 cent gutta in the wet material, as against 44.8 per cent resin and 

 17.2 per cent gutta in the Mexican material. The Colombian 

 product is therefore inferior to the Mexican, and when used in 

 the manufacture of chewing gum, is mixed with the latter. 



Fig. 2. Achras Sapota, 

 Leaves, Fruit and Seeds 



1 Chicle. By M. T. Dawe, F. L. .S. The Rubber Age, London, December, 

 1920, 452-454. 



