Pretoria - Eating the sweet chocolate spread Nutella on bread is a favourite of most children.
However, trying to scoop it with your finger in a bid to break the Guinness World Record for eating the most Nutella in 60 seconds does not always provide for sweet victory, especially if the elements are against you.
Pretoria east financial adviser Billy Cowley is no stranger to attempting the world record in eating ordinary household products.
He previously held the world record for eating the most Marmite in the world in 60 seconds. He was, however, overtaken in this when someone bettered his record.
Although favouring salt over sweet, Cowley on Thursday night at Hennie’s Pub in Moreletapark decided to attempt the world record for eating the most Nutella. But things didn’t go his way, as the conditions inside the venue were simply too warm.
Cowley said the jam-packed venue, the pizza oven and other elements caused the Nutella to run.
“I had to scoop the Nutella out of the jar with my finger, so, it was supposed to be room temperature to make this easier. The running Nutella made things very difficult and I was only able to scoop about 185g up. There was simply no chance at all that I could have eaten more. I gave it my all, but alas, the runny Nutella got the better of me,” he said.
While doing his best to attempt the record, he was cheered on by a crowd in the pub, while about 2 000 people watched the attempt online.
But this was simply not enough for him to score a victory.
Cowley said he realised from the start that he was facing a tough challenge with the runny chocolate spread. But his actual problems started at the 30 second mark.
“When I started and as I put my finger in, I could feel it was too runny. At the 3-second mark I realised I had to get more into my mouth and I somehow managed to take a huge bite of it. But it went straight into my throat and I did not have enough saliva to swallow it.
“I started shaking. Almost as if it got… this morning I did it for myself, ate 200g in 20 seconds. My aim was to eat 500g. So if I do it like this, I will definitely make it,” he said.
He was back at it yesterday morning, although unofficially, to try and see if he could better his attempt of the previous night. Things went better, he said, as the Nutella was no longer runny and he managed to eat 200g in 20 seconds.
Cowley said he realised that he could achieve this and he will again some time soon attempt this world record.
The current world record for eating Nutella is 435g in 60 seconds, held by Andre Ortolf of Germany, who set it in April 2020.
Asked why his previous record involved Marmite and this time it was Nutella, Cowley said this was to prove that any household product could be used to challenge a world record and people did not have to look elsewhere than their kitchen.
“I am trying to tell South Africans that one can break the record with all types of household goods. I am trying to create an awareness that anyone can attempt this,” he said.
Cowley said there were about 55 000 world records scored worldwide, but only 0.4% of this involved South Africans.
Asked how his stomach reacted to his overload of Nutella, Cowley said he had no problem this time. His (now overtaken) world record for eating Marmite previously, however, left him with a bit of a reminder afterwards, stomach-wise.
He also did not fear a sugar overload, Cowley said, because as a child he easily managed two tins of condensed milk at a time.
Pretoria News