Tue, March 17, 2009
From Monty Python to celebrity endorsers. From the UK to Japan the mystery meat has inspired legions of followers and thousands of recipes everything from SPAM sandwiches to SPAM sushi. It's not exactly haute cuisine but a visit to the SPAM Museum in Austin, Minnesota, a.k.a. Spamtown USA gives you a sense of the cult following.
SOUNDBITE: Brian from Minnesota (ENGLISH) saying:
"Never been here before but heard of it and had to stop in and check it out."
SOUNDBITE: Sarah from Tennessee (ENGLISH) saying:
"We left the baby with the grandparents and though we'd come visit the spam museum for the first time."
The museum doesn't take itself too seriously.
From interactive displays to a historical timeline visitors say it's spamtastic.
Norm Kjome is a SPAM Ambassador.
SOUNDBITE: Norm Kjome, SPAM Ambassador, (ENGLISH) saying:
"Hormel was the first meat packer to can meat in America successfully."
Spiced Ham, or SPAM as it became known, was introduced in 1937 but really gained in popularity during World War 2.
SOUNDBITE: Norm Kjome, SPAM Ambassador, (ENGLISH) saying:
"Even Russia. The Premier said it won the war. We sent it to every country and every GI tasted SPAM and some of them said they'd never eat it again. They come in here and they'll have a sample."
Even before the invention of the television.
(nat pop radio commercial)
George Burns and Gracie Allen were celebrity radio endorsers.
Marketing has always played a big part in spreading the SPAM brand around the world.
SOUNDBITE: Tom from the United Kingdom (ENGLISH) saying:
"Tells you where it's sold around the world. so it's all very interesting."
And, like most museums, the tour ends with a gift shop.
SOUNDBITE: Adrian from the United Kingdom (ENGLISH) saying:
"You can just get normal or lite in the UK so those are the only ones I've seen over in the UK anyway so I'll try these. SPAM hickory smoked and I love honey, the golden honey, it's brilliant."
Now, that's something to whet your appetite.
Ruben Ramirez, Reuters, Spamtown, Minnesota.
