70 Years of SPAM Canned Meat

Spam was introduced into the market in 1937 . It's orginal name was Hormel spiced ham. The new name was chosen in a contest where the winner, Kenneth Daigneau, was paid $100.

A 56 gram (approximately 2 ounce) serving of original Spam provides 7 grams of protein, 2 grams of carbohydrates, 15 grams of fat (23% US Daily Value) including 6 grams of saturated fat (28% US Daily Value), and over 170 calories. A serving contains nearly a third of the recommended daily intake of sodium (salt). Spam provides very little in terms of vitamins and minerals (0% vitamin A, 1% vitamin C, 1% calcium, 3% iron). It has been listed as a food that is a poor choice for weight loss (or weight gain) and optimum health and as a food that "is high in saturated fat and sodium".

The largest consumers of SPAM are Hawaiian residents and the territories of Guam. More than four million cans every year, or an average twelve cans of Spam per person per year. Hawaii is so well associated with Spam that Hormel even introduced a limited edition "Hawaii" can in 2003. I just returned from Hawaii and I can tell you that it is a very popular ingredient in many entree choices. The most popular item using spam is called Spam Musubi . It is cooked spam on top of a block of rice and nori seaweed. You can buy this product in the grocery stores, the gas stations, the carryouts and of course the ABC stores . It costs less than $2 and is served warm. It might not sound good but it sure tastes great! You go into any fast food restaurant in Hawaii and you will find some type of spam being sold. For breakfast at McDonalds or Burger King, you will find scrambled eggs, spam and hash browns . We even found a Chinese restaurant serving breakfast of spam and eggs.

During World War II, sales of Spam took an upward turn . Hormel Foods provided 15 million cans of luncheon meat to troops each week . It was a product the soldiers could easily carry and consume because it requires no refrigeration. SPAM was perfect for the military. It was among the standard K-rations for U.S. soldiers. The soldiers introduced it in Hawaii and other countries. SPAM continued to be popular all around the world after the war was over. Hormel Foods began to sell to international markets. Places like Denmark, the Philippines, Japan and South Korea all began to produce this amazing product called SPAM.

SPAM is now distributed in 41 countries and trademarked in more than 100 countries on six continents.

Happy Anniversary SPAM !