In a small town in Canada called Cheadle, there is a strange monument dedicated to one of the world’s most famous snack foods: Cheetos, which are currently undergoing a revival of sorts. Cheetos have gone beyond the metal bag to become a flavor, a powder that flavors everything, a lifestyle full of monosodium glutamate and artificial coloring.
That orange powder is called “Cheetle,” and that was the sole reason the brand decided to place the statue in Cheadle, Alberta, because of the phonetic similarity between the two. “That’s right, Canada, there’s an official term (and now a statue) for the powdery residue left behind after eating your favorite snacks,” reads a statement from Frito-Lay. “According to the dictionary, ‘Cheetle is the name for the powdery residue left on your fingertips when you eat a Cheetos fry.’”
Anyone who has ever eaten Cheetos knows that the powder sticks to the skin to the point of becoming embedded in the fingerprints, leaving your fingers orange for at least a whole day. And, since the important thing here is that powder, the artist decided to capture it in fingers full of Cheetos that measure a little more than five meters high:
Is it a nice tribute… or an orange blob in the middle of what could be a beautiful natural landscape? The statue will be there until November 4 at 400 Railway Ave in Cheadle, AB. After that, they will take it on tour across Canada, so that all Canadians will have a chance to appreciate some huge sticky fingers up close.
Story originally published in Spanish in Cultura Colectiva
