Special Report

8 Gum Brands To Avoid

Mike Edmisten

Published: January 17, 2024 12:22 pm

Chewing gum was a childhood rite for most Americans. Back in elementary school, gum was tantamount to currency. A few pieces of gum could immediately turn you into one of the most powerful and important people in the school’s social structure. You had to be secretive about it, though, since gum was banned in most schools. The “black market” nature of gum made it all the more appealing to kids.

As adults, we tend to view gum quite differently than when we were youngsters. Maybe that’s because it is no longer forbidden. If we want a piece of gum today, we grab it and start chewing. No one is stopping us. Also, some of the allure of chewing gum wears off in adulthood. In fact, gum can even turn someone into a bit of a pariah. How many of us find it hyper-irritating when someone loudly smacks their gum while chewing it with their mouth open? (Seriously…stop it!)

However, just because we’re grown up doesn’t mean we have to leave gum behind entirely. The childhood magic may be gone, but there are still reasons to have a piece of gum now and then. Chewing gum can help freshen your breath (and it won’t get you in trouble with your boss like those noisy Tic Tacs!). The American Dental Association has found that chewing sugar-free gum after a meal helps prevent tooth decay. Some research suggests chewing gum can also ease some digestive issues. Plus, gum brings back a little childhood nostalgia. Given the stresses of everyday life, a short mental trip back to simpler times sounds good, doesn’t it?

Choosing a Gum Brand

Source: Lizardflms / Shutterstock.com

When we were kids, we didn’t worry much about which gum was the best. The best gum was whatever gum we could get our little hands on at that moment. As grown-ups, though, we can afford to be a bit more selective. No, choosing the right gum is not the most important decision you will make today. (If it is, then how easy is your life?!?!?) But if you’re going to chew gum, you might as well select a brand that has good, long-lasting flavor. The eight gum brands listed below simply do not deliver the goods. (And, while we’re at it, you can check out ten candy brands to avoid here.)

24/7 Wall St. compiled this list of gum brands to avoid by consulting ten different food/candy websites and other blog and vlog reviews. Gum brands that were mentioned as subpar on numerous outlets were included in this list. We also employed editorial discretion to include certain gums that may not have appeared in the majority of the reviews but received stinging criticism on some of the sites.

8. Big Red

Source: Courtesy of Mike Edmisten via 24/7 Wall St.

• Company: Mars Wrigley
• Product Debut: 1975

“Big Red” can refer to a cream soda brand, a 1962 Disney film, various sports mascots, or a Honda ATC from the 1980s. For our purposes, though, we’re focused on Big Red chewing gum from Wrigley.

While the “Big Red” brand name is a crowded field, Wrigley’s gum stood out with one of the more memorable commercial songs from the ‘80s and ‘90s. The song promised that, if you chewed Big Red gum, you could, “kiss a little longer, laugh a little longer, stay close a little longer.” This jingle was highly successful. It helped Big Red oust Dentyne as the leader in the cinnamon gum market. However, the nostalgia for Big Red has faded over time.

Some reviewers found the gum’s cinnamon flavor a bit too strong at the start. However, despite the “little longer” marketing campaign, Big Red’s flavor does not last all that long. It was far from the lowest-rated gum in the survey, but there are better options available if you have a hankering for cinnamon gum. Trident, for example, scored quite well in the reviews.

7. Bubble Yum

Source: Courtesy of Mike Edmisten via 24/7 Wall St.

• Company: Hershey’s
• Product Debut: 1975

We were hesitant to add this gum to the list simply because it would feel like a gut punch to the childhood of many readers. However, the reviewers we consulted were underwhelmed with Bubble Yum.

Bubble Yum was the first soft bubble gum ever created, which was great news to kids who nearly broke their teeth trying to chew gums like Bazooka or those rock-hard gumballs from the nickel machines at the grocery store. The gum was so soft that it actually gave rise to a conspiracy theory. It was speculated that spider eggs were the secret ingredient that gave the gum its soft texture. The rumor spread so wide that the Life Savers Company took out a full-page ad in the New York Times to quell the fears of its new soft bubble gum.

Bubble Yum was one of the big three bubble gum brands of the 1980s, along with Bubblicious and Hubba Bubba (the latter of which will appear later on this list). The company even employed a young Leonardo DiCaprio in their commercials. A lot of us have fond memories of Bubble Yum from our childhoods. If you want to keep those memories intact, don’t purchase a pack of Bubble Yum today. Like many memories from yesteryear, this gum is not as good as many of us remember it.

Multiple reviewers noted the gum has a strong artificial sweetness. One reviewer admitted that they loved this gum as a child. As an adult, though, they found it to be, “Full of sugar, overly sweet, [with a] horrible texture.”

6. Big League Chew

Source: Courtesy of Mike Edmisten via 24/7 Wall St.

• Company: Ford Gum
• Product Debut: 1980

“You’re in the big leagues when you’re into Big League Chew!” So says the advertising slogan for this gum. We may have believed it when we were kids. Today, however, this gum is getting sent back to the minor leagues.

According to the Big League Chew website, the gum was created by left-handed pitcher, Rob Nelson, in 1977. He purportedly invented the product while he was killing time in the bullpen. Chewing tobacco was widespread among baseball players in the ‘70s and ‘80s. Big League Chew was marketed as a healthy alternative to chewing tobacco, which is why the gum is shredded and comes in a tobacco-like pouch. Today, it is the official gum of the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Back in the day, there was nothing like grabbing a handful of this shredded gum, picking up a wiffle ball bat, and stepping to the plate. It was as close to the big leagues as most of us would ever get. However, this is another instance where the nostalgia of yesterday doesn’t mesh with the reality of today.

One of the knocks on Big League Chew is the price. We typically expect gum to be an inexpensive commodity. A three-pouch pack of Big League Chew costs ten bucks on Amazon. That’s pretty steep.

The actual bubble gum flavor is decent. It’s not remarkable, but it’s also not bad. In the end, however, it’s certainly not worth the price of the product.

Some may also take issue with the gum’s resemblance of chewing tobacco. Even though it was originally meant to be an alternative to tobacco, it does feel a bit reminiscent of the candy cigarettes that were popular in the ‘70s and ‘80s. Younger reviewers in our survey didn’t seem to pick up on this, though. One compared the gum to shredded cheese. He seemed completely unaware that Big League Chew was actually designed to mimic chewing tobacco, so this might not be a top-shelf concern today. What is a concern, though, is that this gum simply is not worth what you’ll pay for it.

5. Stride

Stride gum (CC BY-SA 2.0 CA) by Project-79

• Company: Mondelēz International
• Product Debut: 2006

Stride is the first sugar-free entry on our list. This sugarless gum came on the scene in the mid-2000s and was pretty well received. At its peak, Stride was available in well over 30 flavors. Stride 2.0, Stride Shift, and Stride Spark were all introduced as different iterations of the gum. Today, however, only a few flavors remain and they can be difficult to find. In some areas, Amazon might be one of the only places where you can still buy Stride gum. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, though, considering that Stride did not fare well among our testers.

Stride’s flavor was described as “artificial” and “overwhelming” at the start. It doesn’t last long, though. The gum loses its “stride” rather quickly as the flavor disappears after only a couple of minutes.

You won’t find Stride in the checkout line at the grocery store very often anymore. There’s a reason for that.

4. Mentos

Source: Courtesy of Mike Edmisten via 24/7 Wall St.

• Company: Perfetti Van Melle
• Product Debut: 2005

Mentos candy traces its roots back to 1932. The mints have been a perennial favorite for generations. Their popularity in the U.S. exploded in the 1990s, thanks in large part to the corny, over-the-top TV commercials. (Honestly, how much ‘90s corniness can you pack into one ad? This one goes for the limit.)

Mentos gum didn’t hit the U.S. market until 2005 (after a failed attempt in 2003). Today, it is available in dozens of flavors including fresh mint, bubble gum, watermelon, and cinnamon. There are also sour varieties, as well as vitamin gum.

We’re big fans of Mentos candy, but the gum garnered lackluster reviews from our panel. The gum is pretty good upon the first bite. It almost tastes like a Mentos candy (emphasis on “almost”). The flavor fades quickly, though.

Mentos might be a victim of its own success. The mints are so beloved that any product bearing the Mentos name is expected to feature the same high quality. This gum falls short of that Mentos mark.

3. Bazooka

Source: Courtesy of Mike Edmisten via 24/7 Wall St.

• Company: Bazooka Candy Brands
• Product Debut: 1947

Now we’re getting to the gums that are just flat-out bad. This entry is a familiar one: Bazooka. Your parents and even your grandparents probably remember chewing Bazooka when they were kids. It was perceived as an all-American gum, complete with its red, white, and blue packaging. It was released shortly after World War II and shared the same name as a rocket launcher. The gum cost 1¢ when it debuted.

A few years after its release, Bazooka Joe comics were added inside the gum wrappers to further entice children to purchase the gum. Those comics would remain part of Bazooka’s marketing strategy until 2012.

Setting aside all the nostalgia (which has become a common theme in this endeavor), Bazooka gum received harsh criticism from our judges. The bubble gum taste is somewhat pleasant (although a tad artificial). The flavor is gone in mere seconds, though, leaving you with a worthless, flavorless glob. The gum’s consistency is also shockingly hard. If you chew it for very long, your jaws will start to hurt and you’ll begin questioning your life choices.

2. Razzles

Source: Evan-Amos / Wikimedia Commons

• Company: Tootsie Roll Industries
• Product Debut: 1966

The 1960s were tumultuous and confusing years that produced some rather odd things. Even so, we’re still at a loss as to how Razzles ever came to be.

Razzles debuted in 1966 with the slogan, “First it’s a candy, then it’s a gum. Little round Razzles are so much fun.” The premise is that the product starts as candy, and then morphs into gum as you chew it. It is not fun, though. Not even a little bit. There is no waxing nostalgic about Razzles. It is just a terrible product.

Razzles are not widely available, so they didn’t appear on many of the sites we referenced for this list. However, it quickly became clear that if this product was available on a wider scale, it might have taken the top spot as the worst gum on the market. While several reviewers didn’t include it in their surveys, those that did utterly eviscerated this gum.

Biting into a Razzles was likened to biting into a chalky antacid. One reviewer summed it up with a single word: “disgusting.” It was also described as sickeningly sweet. And, if you do happen to like the sickening sweetness, it doesn’t last long. Then all you’re left with is a hunk of chalky nastiness. Skip this gum…or candy…or whatever it is.

1. Hubba Bubba Bubble Tape

Source: Courtesy of Mike Edmisten via 24/7 Wall St.

• Company: Mars Wrigley
• Product Debut: 1988

This gum was the easy winner (or loser, depending on your perspective) in the contest for the worst gum on the market. Bubble Tape debuted in the late ‘80s and was quite popular during the ‘90s. The whole schtick was that, instead of individual pieces, it was sold as one continuous, six-foot-long “tape.” For what it’s worth, Bubble Tape is one product where “shrinkflation” has had no effect. It is still sold in six-foot lengths.

In the 1990s, this gum was marketed directly to children and teens with the tagline, “It’s six feet of bubble gum – for you, not them.” The “them” in that line referred to adults. The ad campaign meshed with the attitude of “Parents Just Don’t Understand” by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, which debuted the same year as Bubble Tape. In other words, the gum was marketed to youth who were rebelling against parental and adult authority. That marketing campaign was successful, in part, because it covered over the fatal flaw of Bubble Tape: it’s awful.

The flavor is underwhelming, to put it kindly. It also lasts for about five chews and then it’s gone. However, the consistency of the gum was what reviewers found the most off-putting. The gum was described as “powdery” and “mealy.” One reviewer likened the strange texture to “eating an eraser.”

Bubble Tape? No thanks. We’d rather chew actual tape.