I saw a recent article in the business section of my local newspaper stating that the production and sale of Hormel’s meat product, SPAM, has had double digit growth over the last few months beginning in May of 2008. This corresponds to the downward trend in the overall economy with folks looking for ways to reduce expenses. It seems that with every downward cycle of the economy, SPAM sales increase. I don’t eat SPAM myself and the culinary attraction is not there but I understand saving money, which is, I assume, part of the appeal in the product. It’s cheap ($2.60 per can) and plentiful. So I thought I’d review what’s in SPAM and see if I could get any nutritional value for my hard earned money.

First some historical tidbits; SPAM, aka Mystery Meat and Something Posing As Meat, has been around since the 1930’s when it was called Hormel Spiced Ham. The name was shortened to SPAM and has been in continuous production ever since. During World

War II, because of meat rationing and difficulty getting fresh meat overseas, SPAM was used extensively to feed the troops. It became a staple then in post-war Europe and Asia where it still maintains somewhat of a cultural following. It is so ubiquitous in Asia that it is served in those bastions of epicurean delights, McDonalds and Burger King. In parts of England you can purchase spam fritters and chips instead of fish and chips. While the main Hormel production site is in Austin, Minnesota, it has been licensed for production in both Europe and Asia. Annually, 122 million cans are sold worldwide. In the US, Hawaii is the biggest consumer.

Nutritionally, 1 serving or 2 ounces of SPAM contains 7 grams of protein, 2 grams of carbohydrates, 15 grams of fat of which 6 grams are saturated fats, and 170 + calories. A serving of spam also contains 767 mg of sodium. This is about 3.5% of the total weight of the serving in salt. There is minimal vitamin content in SPAM with no “A”, a little “C” along with some calcium and iron. The label ingredients in SPAM are: chopped pork shoulder meat, ham meat (what part does ham meat come from?), salt, water, sugar and sodium nitrite as a preservative. There is a gelatinous covering on SPAM which is called aspic. Aspic forms from the gelatin found in the meat after processing.

Taking a look at a canned chicken product from Swanson, 2 oz packed in water, we have 50 calories, ½ gram saturated fat, 270 mg of sodium, 10 gram of protein and 1 gram of carbohydrate. Again there is no appreciable vitamin or mineral content. Oh, and there is no aspic.

So there you have it; a high sodium, high calorie, high saturated fat pork product with a jelly coating versus a significantly healthier chicken product of comparable cost. In this economy I think my nutrition dollar goes further with the chicken. Even better, buy a whole chicken and forget the cans. You’ll probably save some money besides.