That is not to say that the flavored gelatin dessert doesn’t have special significance in the city..

For various complicated reasons, at some point during the past 30 years, Jell-O became the symbol par excellence of rural Utah culture. And, during the same time period, Salt Lake City become eager to establish itself as a midsize metropolis with a modicum of sophistication.

The best way of doing this seemed to be by differentiating ourselves from our fellow Utahns who live in the sticks. Fortunately, this was easy: We just looked at what they were doing, and then we did the opposite.

(That’s why you’ll rarely find Jell-O served in any Salt Lake City home, unless it’s for camp value. I once made an elaborate Jell-O diorama for a friend’s birthday party, and then had great fun acting affronted when somebody actually ate it.)

Of course, Salt Lake City’s wayward ways did not go unnoticed. The Legislature finds a way to punish Salt Lake City for its unconventional behavior during every yearly session. That’s where the “Official State Snack” resolution came in:

In reaction to Salt Lakers’ incessant ridicule of Jell-O, rural Utahns adopted it as a badge of honor. However, Jell-O sales continued to decrease until, around 1999, Kraft Foods announced that Iowa had overtaken Utah in per-capita Jell-O consumption.

This was humiliating to rural Utahns, who staunchly refused to accept the idea that Utah culture might change as a result of deviant shopping patterns in the capital city. A campaign to reestablish Utah’s Jell-O preeminence ensued, and rural Utahns redoubled their Jell-O efforts, recapturing the title.

Because of this, Utah may be the only place where Jell-O carries political connotations.

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A copy of the 2001 Utah Senate resolution (SR5) is available on the Legislature’s Website:

http://www.le.state.ut.us/~2001/bills/sbillint/SR0005.htm