Saturday, November 15, 2008

Boom Times for Spam

Hormel has two shifts working seven days a week to keep up with demand. Though much maligned, it's much loved in some places. When Lauren was in school at Santa Barbara City College she had a number of Hawaiian friends who loved the stuff. Loco mocos made with Spam was their favorite dish. I never found it to be that awful when I ate it as a covenient camping food - but what do I know, I like grits.

So the question is are people buying Spam to economize on immediate consumption, or are they stockpiling this easily storable food in anticipation of hard times?

Money quote:

"Because it is vacuum-sealed in a can and does not require refrigeration, Spam can last for years. Hormel says 'it’s like meat with a pause button.'”

2 comments:

Heather Houlahan said...

Weird discovery -- SPAM costs more than most canned hams.

Not that canned ham is particularly a "natural" or wholesome product, but whatup?

Mom used to make it diced, fried up with diced potatoes and onions. One step up from pancakes for dinner in the dead-broke dinner roundup.

I still get a yen for it once in a while.

Neutrino Cannon said...

Having a number of family members in HI, I can confirm that that spam is indeed anomalously popular there. Spam musubi is another common variation.

Apparently Hormel recognizes this regional palatal quirk, and made special edition Hawaiian spam cans for a while.


-R.A.W.