Friday, August 28, 2009

Cracker Jack

Tonight, while attending a minor league baseball game (Reading lost to Erie, 9-6, in 13 innings) with my father, I was struck by an interesting thought. Does anyone actually buy and consume Cracker Jack anymore? Or do vendors at baseball stadiums continue to sell it only because there's no other food that will fit the cadence and rhyme scheme of "Take Me Out To The Ballgame"?

Of course, within ten seconds of asking this aloud, my dad pointed to the girl a few seats down our row who was happily chowing down on the caramel/peanut/popcorn mixture. Okay, so apparently people do still eat Cracker Jack on occasion, but that led me to a more interesting question:

Does anyone eat Cracker Jack when NOT attending a live baseball game?

Come to think of it, I'm not even sure where I would buy Cracker Jack if I wasn't in a baseball stadium. Do they sell it in supermarkets? In candy stores? I would love to know the percentage of Cracker Jack's annual sales that go to baseball stadiums. Is it 90%? 95%? Is there any other product in the world with a smaller niche market?

Updates on the investigation will be forthcoming.

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