Also known as sapodilla, the zapote or Manilkara achras is a jungle-dwelling tree which reaches heights of between 10 and 15 meters and is abundant in eastern Yucatán, southern and western Campeche and Quintana Roo. It bears a sweet, fragrant fruit known as chicozapote yet it is best known as the source of the milky white sap used in the manufacture of chicle or chewing gum.
The ancient Maya were familiar with the sap of the zapote, they called it sicté and used it as a gum. Yet it wasn't until 1860, during the presidential term of Antonio López de Santa Anna, that chicle was produced on a commercial scale. James Adams, an American entrepreneur saw the potential of the gum, he added sugar and artificial flavorings to the elastic but insipid chicle and created the chewing gum we know today. .
Chicle production took off during World War One when American soldiers chewed it to calm their nerves and assuage their thirst. Mexico's first gum companies were founded in 1923 and by the end of the decade factories had also sprung up in Germany, Japan and Egypt.
© 2004 Editorial Veras. La guía Oficial del Caribe Mexicano.