Gumball Chronicles: The History and the Process of the Gumball

Welcome to the Gumball Chronicle, the go-to place for all your gumball needs! From the history of the gumball, the manufacturing of a gumball, to even the wide variety of gumball flavours, we’ve got you covered. So, take a look at the website, and see what we've got to offer!

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Gumball Origins

History of Gumballs

Before the conception of the gumball, they existed as just a lump of gum, then into stick form, and then into the gumball. Although we know how gum was before the gumball, the history of the conception of the gumball will never be truly exact. Allegedly, the gumball was originally a mistake made in the early 20th century by a german grocer in New York. A wadded piece of gum landed into a barrel of sugar, giving that shiny texture. The originally block-shaped gum was then made into a spherical shape and sold through the gumball machines we see today.

The Gumball Process

The start of the gumball process is to gather the base, called chicle. Back then, natural ingredients from sapodilla trees were gathered and sent to factories for production, although nowadays gum is made from other synthetic materials. From there the chicle goes through the process of being ground up, dried, mixed, and cut up to become a piece of gum. From there, color and shape are added to create the average gumball. A machine then cuts up the gum into various sizes, one being the spherical gumball. The gum in coated multiple times in a sweet colourful liquid, which gives it that vibrant color. From there, the gumballs are wrapped and sent out for sales. It takes about 5 days for the gumball to go from its base ingredients to being sold in machines.

Gumball Machines

The gumball machine is a large, clear sphere ok top of a metal dispenser, usually red in color. Coins are then inserted into the machine and you have to turn a handle 360 degrees and the gumball will pop out through the bottom of the machine. The machine was originally meant for things such as peanuts but slowly transitioned to be mainly for gumballs. The main currency used would be a single quarter, but it varies depending on location around the world. There are also very fancy gumball machines that show your gumball rolling down to the hatch, or going through its very own obstacle course, adding to the experience of the gumball!

Gumball Flavours

Gumballs come in a variety of flavours. Most of the flavours correspond to their colour, such as strawberry being pink, or orange being orange, but there are others that might be harder to tell, such as white being pineapple, and some with the same colour but different flavours, such as green being lime or green apple. But the most common flavours would be strawberry (pink), blueberry (blue), cherry (red), orange (orange), banana (yellow), grape (purple), lemon-lime (green), and pineapple (white). Other than these gumball flavours, there have also been some unorthodox ones. From pistachio, peanut butter and jelly, and even chicken have been conceived, and are not for everybody, but to this day many different flavours are being created.

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Fun Facts

The Guinness World Record for the largest bubblegum bubble ever blown is 23 inches in diameter, blown by Susan Montgomery from Fresno, CA in 1994.

Chewing gum burns approximately 11 calories per hour.

Contrary to popular belief, swallowing a gumball does not mean it will stay in your stomach for years. Although not digestible, it will pass through your system in a few days at most.

Latest Articles

Kansas City teen starts business by taking old gumball machines and putting them back in stores!

14-year-old Eric Wilson came up with the idea during the pandemic, where he would buy old gumball machines, give them a good cleaning, and puts them back in stores. While he started at one machine and upgraded all the way to six, he someday hopes to expand to larger, custom vending machines. His mother, Qubanic Wilson, is a very staunch supporter of his budding business.

What Eric is doing here demonstrates that people anywhere, no matter how old, can get out there and create your very own community and become an entrepreneur. He even hopes to someday own a large business in the future so he can supply jobs to others in the community. It takes dedication and focus, but as Eric himself stated, “whatever you put your mind to, you can do it”.

"Eric presents a business model that's pretty unique, where he comes in, he brings the machine and he takes care of the maintenance and the restock," said Valeria Taylor, director of marketing for Merc Co-op.

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The Gumball Chronicles

The past, present, and future of the gumball