[1] It was then pitched to the Wrigley Company (longtime owners of the Chicago Cubs) by fellow Maverick and former New York Yankee All-Star Jim Bouton as a healthy imitation of the tobacco-chewing habit common among ballplayers in the 1970s.

The cartoon-style packaging, originally designed by artist Bill Mayer, comes in colors such as neon green (sour apple) and bright purple (grape).

The original shredded R&D concept samples of the product were produced by running standard sheets of bubble gum through an office paper shredder.

Research has linked children's consumption of candy versions of tobacco products to an increased tendency to take up their real-life equivalents.

[3] Currently, it is manufactured in the U.S. by Ford Gum & Machine Company in Akron, New York, after taking over distribution rights from Wrigley and moving production from Mexico at the end of 2010.