HONOLULU -- Spam has long enjoyed huge popularity in Hawaii. On average, Hawaiians consume more than five cans of the iconic canned-meat brand per person per year—more than any other state in the union.
Why Hawaii?
Spam’s popularity in the Aloha State has a lot to do with its durability, said a report by MinnPost.
It’s a nonperishable meat product made of pork, water, salt, sugar, potato starch and sodium nitrate that does not need to be refrigerated—or even cooked—to be safely eaten. (The name “Spam” derives from “spiced ham.”)
First sold in 1937, Spam took off during World War II, when U.S. military rations often included canned meats—an efficient way to feed hungry troops stationed in hard-to-reach destinations.
“This was a portable, convenient product that you could make many different ways for breakfast, lunch or dinner,” Nicole Behne, marketing director of legacy brands for Austin, Minn.-based Hormel Foods Corp., told the online news source.
After the war, many of the troops left, but Spam stuck around in Hawaii and other parts of the Pacific.
“It’s easier to import shelf-stable meat than it is to import livestock, which could be destructive to Hawaiian conservation efforts—and you have to feed them,” said Shayna Inzunza, a research analyst of food research for consulting firm Technomic, Chicago, told the news website.
Hormel has even created new flavors—teriyaki and Portuguese sausage—specifically for the Hawaiian market, the report said.
And commonly sold at restaurants and convenience stores as a quick snack, Spam musubis—a slice of Spam atop a block of rice, wrapped up in a piece of seaweed—are perhaps Spam’s most ubiquitous incarnation in island cooking.
In Hawaii, 7-Eleven convenience stores go through about 70,000 musubis per week, Behne said.
Peter Napathalung, senior manager of market insights for Technomic, said Spam probably owes a great deal of its notoriety in Hawaii and the Pacific to the fact that it complements the local cuisine’s flavor profile. It can be found in both high-end and everyday fare (Spam has been on the menu at McDonald’s restaurants, paired with rice and eggs, in Hawaii since 2002).
“It’s very salty, it’s very fatty and rich, which are things that complement white rice,” Napathalung told MinnPost. “There’s good contrasting flavors—the tropical, the citrus.”
In other Spam news, Hormel is bringing back the Spamerican Food Truck Tour, a coast-to-coast culinary journey thanking chefs, fans and military for their ongoing support. This year the brand is partnering with Operation Gratitude to bring its letter-writing campaign into 16 communities, supporting its goal of sending the 2 Millionth Care Package in 2018 by pledging a $1 donation for every letter written in-market and online at SPAM.com. Each letter will be included in a care package, assembled by volunteers, and sent to troops deployed overseas, as well as to new recruits, veterans and first responders at home.
Food Network Host and U.S. Air Force veteran Sunny Anderson is again joining the tour, supporting the Operation Gratitude cause and showcasing her new recipe: Operation Spam Gravy With Biscuits.
And Hormel has opened a new Spam Museum in downtown Austin, Minn. The 14,000-square-foot museum celebrates the 79-year history of the Spam brand and the 125-year history of Hormel. It houses a mix of galleries from the previous location and new experiences, including the product’s popularity around the globe and its history with the military.
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