In the 1930s Taichiro Morinaga was trying to make a new kind of chewing gum for Japan. See, in Japan it used to be—and somewhat still is—taboo to take food out of your mouth. So, to make chewing gum a more culturally accepted snack he tried to create a gum that could be swallowed like any other food. Fortunately, Mr. Morinaga had the ability to make outstanding caramel. The caramel was special in many ways, but what really made it unique was its texture. The caramel’s creamy and chewy texture was like nothing else in Japan. So, he decided to take this unique texture and combine it with a natural strawberry flavor. And, in 1931 Chewlets was born. Because of World War II Mr. Morinaga had to build his company again from scratch. In 1975, and after a lot of work, Chewlets was re-introduced as the wonderful candy now called HI-CHEW. Since then HI-CHEW has become a cultural icon in Japan. To this day over 113 different flavors of HI-CHEW have been created. Maybe you have seen some of them at your local Asian market. If this is your first chance to try HI-CHEW then we suggest you try strawberry first. Enjoy!

In the 1930s Taichiro Morinaga was trying to make a new kind of chewing gum for Japan. See, in Japan it used to be—and somewhat still is—taboo to take food out of your mouth. So, to make chewing gum a more culturally accepted snack he tried to create a gum that could be swallowed like any other food.

Fortunately, Mr. Morinaga had the ability to make outstanding caramel. The caramel was special in many ways, but what really made it unique was its texture. The caramel’s creamy and chewy texture was like nothing else in Japan. So, he decided to take this unique texture and combine it with a natural strawberry flavor. And, in 1931 Chewlets was born. Because of World War II Mr. Morinaga had to build his company again from scratch. In 1975, and after a lot of work, Chewlets was re-introduced as the wonderful candy now called HI-CHEW.

Since then HI-CHEW has become a cultural icon in Japan. To this day over 113 different flavors of HI-CHEW have been created. Maybe you have seen some of them at your local Asian market. If this is your first chance to try HI-CHEW then we suggest you try strawberry first. Enjoy!