Imagine the

Mouthwatering local

Food you’d find at a

Restaurant in Hawaii-

Pineapples and other

Fresh fruit; sweet

Coconut milk;

Delicious fish just

Caught and grilled. So,

It may surprise you

That one of the Aloha

State’s most popular

Foods is far from

Fresh: Hawaiians can’t

Get enough of Spam!

Yes, Spam, that brand

Of canned meat that

Has inspired jokes.

Among some and

Devotion among

Others for decades.

Spam’s recipe has

Changed slightly over

The years, but peeling

Back the can’s lid has

Always revealed a

Square of pork and

Ham. Salt, water,

Sugar, potato starch,

And the preservative

Sodium nitrate round

Out the recipe.

Since Spam is

Canned, it can last a

Very long time. The

Brand has been

Around quite a while

Itself-dating to the

1930s. The Hormel.

Company in Austin,

Minnesota, had been

Selling pork in cans.

When Jay Hormel, the

Son of the company’s

Founder, came up with

The new recipe. In a

Naming contest, an

Executive’s brother

Came up with the

Winning name-a
 Mash-up of the words.

“spiced ham.” Spam

Was introduced to

Consumers on July

5. 1937.

Easy to ship and store

Thanks to its square shape, Spam was certainly convenient. Hormel advertised the product as a
way to put together a quick and easy meal. For the next few years, the product was moderately
successful.

Then everything

Changed.

In 1941-just four

Years after Spam

 Debuted-the United States entered World War II. The US military suddenly had a huge demand
for inexpensive food with a long shelf life. During the war, over 100 million cans of Spam were
distributed around the Pacific for members of the military.

Service members stationed in Hawaii, Guam, and the Philippines welcomed the little slices of
meat, referring to them as “Special Army Dinner.” Locals. Living by military installations in Hawaii started
to use the product as well. After World War II ended,

They kept buying the

Product.

Today, Hawaii’s population is about 1.5 million, and state residents eat seven million cans of
Spam a year-far more than people in the rest of the country. Over the years, they have. Devised many
creative ways to serve it. For example: spam tops burgers and is grilled

On skewers with

Pineapple and red.

Pepper to make

Kabobs. Spam

Appears with sushi

And in saimin, a
Noodle and broth

Soup. A popular snack

Food is Spam musubi,

A slice of grilled Spam

On top of a bed of rice

And wrapped with nori

(seaweed). As in the

Philippines and Guam,

Hawaiian fast food

Restaurants serve

Different dishes that

Use Spam.

Perhaps the most

Notable sign of

Hawaiians’ love for

Spam comes during

Springtime, when the

State hosts the annual

Spam Jam, attracting

Thousands of guests.

Restaurants set up

Stalls to sell all kinds

Of Spam recipes, from

Tacos to dessert pies

With candied Spam.

Guests enjoy live

Music, hula dance

Performances, and

Arts and crafts

Activities.

Contestants race

Each other to see how

Many musubi they can

Make in a five-minute

Contest.

Visitors have a

Chance to make a

Difference, too, as
Food banks encourage

Them to bring canned

Goods for donation. It

Wouldn’t be a surprise

If many attendees.

Brought cans of Spam

To share with others!

✔ I’m done