Samuel Yamashita, food historian and Professor of History at Pomona College, noted that the relationship between Spam and militarism didn’t end with World War II. As troops feasted on the canned meat - its long shelf-life making it perfect for wartime conditions - its popularity spread to the people whose land those troops occupied.
military presence there introduced a new staple food to the territory (Hawaii wasn’t recognized as a state until 1959). But while Hawaii residents lost access to a major part of their diet, the large U.S. Because of the islands’ location in the middle of the Pacific, off-shore fishing became a perceived security threat subject to heavy restrictions, she said. Wartime almost always demands food rationing from the civilians of entangled countries - and Hawaii was no exception. A wartime necessityĪccording to Laudan, Spam erupted in the Hawaiian islands during World War II.
Here’s a breakdown of the significance of Spam, from the experts. The impulse to turn one’s nose up at Spam reflects a lack of understanding of how, exactly, Spam accrued its popularity - not just in Hawaii, but also in the Philippines, South Korea, Okinawa and other sites of U.S.
