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HI-CHEW is a well-established Japanese candy series produced by Morinaga. There are a variety of flavors, and in Japan the most popular one is grape. But what about in other countries? HI-CHEW is sold in America, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Singapore… about twenty countries in all. I was not aware of it, but HI-CHEW is quite the globe-spanning treat!

Here is a ranking of popular flavors from some major countries.
 
[America]
Strawberry / 2. Green Apple / 3. Mango / 4. Grape / 5. Melon
 
[Australia]
Strawberry / 2. Green Apple / 3. Mango / 4. Orange
 
[Taiwan]
Grape / 2. Strawberry / 3. Lychee / 4. Peach / 5. Grape Soda
 
[China (Shanghai)]
Grape / 2. Strawberry / 3. Peach / 4. Lemon /5. Green Apple

Western people seem to like strawberry flavor, and Asian people including Japanese seem to be fond of grape flavor. This is interesting. I like grape flavor the best (^^).

Speaking of Japan-limited flavors, we have many local specialty ones. For example, you can get ‘Yubari Melon HI-CHEW’ in Hokkaido, ‘Cherry’ in Tohoku region, ‘Pineapple’ in Okinawa prefecture, and so on. Many people buy local specialty HI-CHEW as souvenirs.

Finally, let me tell you about this unique drink l found on the internet. This is HI-CHEW drink! Sounds strange, doesn’t it? According to someone who sampled this, it’s not just a normal fruit flavor drink, but actually liquid HI-CHEW! It does not seem to be in production anymore, but I’m still very curious to give it a try.

Source: http://gigazine.net/news/20070612_hichew_drink/,  http://www.narinari.com/Nd/20120317504.html

This is JAPAN Style!