Tang (drink mix)

Tang is an American drink mix brand that was formulated by General Foods Corporation food scientist William A. Mitchell<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref> and chemist William Bruce James<ref name=":145">Template:Cite web</ref> in 1957, and first marketed in powdered form in 1959.<ref name=spinoff>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=srad60>Template:Cite news</ref> The Tang brand is currently owned in most countries by Mondelēz International, a North American company spun off from Kraft Foods in 2012. Kraft Heinz owns the Tang brand in North America.

Sales of Tang were poor until NASA used it on John Glenn's Mercury flight in February 1962,Template:Cn and on subsequent Gemini missions.<ref name=fgtasyz>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Better source needed Since then it has been closely associated with the U.S. human spaceflight program, which created the misconception that Tang was invented for the space program.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Tang continues to be used on NASA missions in the present day, over 50 years after its introduction.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

History

General Foods Corporation food scientist William A. Mitchell and chemist William Bruce James formulated and trademarked orange Tang in 1957.<ref name=":0"/><ref name=":145"/><ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref> Tang entered test markets in 1958 and was available to the public beginning in 1959.<ref name=":1" />

Tang was used by early NASA crewed space flights.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 1962, when Mercury astronaut John Glenn conducted eating experiments in orbit, Tang was selected for the menu;<ref name="spinoff" /> it was also used during some Gemini flights, and has also been carried aboard numerous Space Shuttle missions. Although many soda companies sent specially designed canned drinks into space with the crew of STS-51-F, the crew preferred to use Tang, as it could be mixed into existing water containers easily. In 2013, former NASA astronaut Buzz Aldrin said "Tang sucks".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In his autobiography, Return to Earth, published forty years earlier, Aldrin had further clarified: "I can't speak for the other flights, but before ours [Apollo 11], the three of us dutifully sampled the orange drink, supposedly Tang, and instead chose a grapefruit-orange mixture as our citrus drink. If Tang was on our flight I was unaware of it."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The creator of Tang, William A. Mitchell, also invented Pop Rocks, Cool Whip, a form of instant-set Jell-O, and other convenience foods.<ref>Template:Cite news (Video.)</ref> Chemist William Bruce James also invented several Jell-O flavors.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Orange Tang was packaged in glass jars with a metallic green label and orange metal lid. It was promoted as an "instant breakfast" drink rather than a soft drink mix, because it was fortified with vitamins C and A. In print and television advertising Tang was referred to as the nutritious "space age" drink of the astronauts.

Tang's advertising in the 1990s and early 2000s featured an orangutan as a mascot.

Nutritional facts

Tang is sold in powdered and liquid-concentrate form. The suggested serving size is 2 tablespoons, or 31 grams of powdered Original Orange flavored Tang per Template:Convert of water. A single suggested serving of Tang contains Template:Convert of sugar (representing 94% of the product's dry weight); 10% RDA of carbohydrates; 100% RDA of vitamin E; 100% RDA of vitamin C; 6% RDA of calcium and has a total of 120 calories (500 kJ).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Other versions

In 1961 General Foods introduced grapefruit flavored Tang and advertised it in Time Life magazine. It was referred to as a new, natural-tasting Tang flavor. Packaging was a glass jar with yellow label and green metal lid. In 1971 the packaging was updated with an orange metallic label.

In 1971 General Foods introduced a grape flavor of Tang and advertised it in the New York Times Weekly Magazine July 18, 1971. It appeared on store shelves, first with a metallic blue label and blue metal lid, subsequently with a metallic purple label and purple metal lid. While orange Tang could be purchased in various sizes including a large net weight 27 oz. glass jar, the grape flavor was only available in an 18 oz. size.<ref name="General Foods Tang Grape label file copy - April 1971">Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2007, Kraft introduced a new version of orange Tang which replaced half of the sugar with artificial sweeteners. The new packaging advertises "1/2 the sugar of 100% juice".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The artificial sweeteners used in the new formulation are sucralose, acesulfame potassium and neotame. The new formula is more concentrated and distributed in smaller containers, with a Template:Convert (Template:Convert) making Template:Convert.

According to the preparation instructions on the 20 fl oz (590 ml) Tang orange drink mix, 2 level tablespoons of Tang can be combined with 1 cup or 8 fl oz (240 ml) of cold water for 1 serving.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2009, another version of Tang emerged in Template:Convert containers making only Template:Convert.

Orange flavored Tang contributes to most current sales worldwide; however, there are a wide range of flavors of Tang offered globally, including grape, lemon, mango, and pineapple.<ref name="factsh" />

Sales

Tang is sold in more than 30 countries and is available in a variety of flavors depending on location.<ref name="factsh">Template:Cite web</ref> The top three markets for Tang around the world are Brazil, Argentina, and the Philippines.<ref name="corpfactsh">Template:Cite web</ref>

In the Middle East, more than half of Tang's annual sales occur in just six weeks around Ramadan.<ref name="corpfactsh"/>

In June 2011, Kraft Foods announced that Tang has become its twelfth billion-dollar brand, with global sales nearly doubling since 2006.<ref name=schultz>Template:Cite web</ref> The brand in 2010 controlled a category-best 15.6% of the international powder concentrate market<ref name=schultz/> although, like other highly processed or sweetened beverages, demand in developed economies has stagnated or fallen in line with consumers increasing preference for lower calorie drinks.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2018, Tang's manufacturer Mondelez reported a drop in sales following the introduction of tax on calorific sweetened beverages in the Philippines.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

See also

• Instant breakfast
• Kool-Aid

External links

• Template:Official website