Have you noticed that Vademecum has become new? It may not be so easy to see the difference, but Hans Bull was in no doubt when he took the new Vademecum in his mouth.
– Instead of just getting a fresh breath, I instead got a cruel soapy taste that provoked vomiting, Bull says to DinSide.
He thought there was something seriously wrong with the contents of the bottle, and immediately contacted Orkla’s consumer service to notify them. He also sent in the bottle for further investigation.
It turned out that everything was in perfect order. The changes in taste are due to the fact that Orkla has changed the place of production, recipe and name of the traditional mouthwash. The new mouthwash is called Classic, not Original.
– The recipe for the 100-year-old product has been changed to the unrecognizable! raser Bull.
More environmentally friendly
In the dialogue with Orkla’s customer service, the company explained that the mouthwash still contains menthol and peppermint oil, but they have changed supplier of the oils, and changed foaming agent. This should foam a little more, and is at the same time more environmentally friendly, but can contribute to the taste being somewhat different.
– To signal the difference, we have therefore chosen to change the name, writes Anne Gjemdal, communications manager at Orkla, in an e-mail to Dinside.
Bull is not very impressed with this explanation. He says that he also asked his wife to taste the contents without explaining to her what he was thinking.
– After a few seconds, her vomiting reflex came, and she had to brush her teeth to get rid of the taste.
– I am open to change, but not open to breaking me, Bull points out.
The Orignal Vademecum is still in stores, but when it is sold out, it will be replaced by Klassisk.
– This is a product you buy every four years, something I only use occasionally, so it takes a long time to use up a bottle. I reckon that many will be shocked now that they buy a new bottle, and discover that the product is completely destroyed.
Now he has gone to purchase a couple of pieces, so he is secured for the next eight to ten years.
– If Orkla has not made sense before that, I will have to find another mouthwash.
They have it now, we must believe Gjemnes.
Norwegians have a craving for mouthwash
– We register that several consumers are not satisfied with the new taste, and we acknowledge that the difference from the original is noticeable. Vademecum has loyal users, and we naturally do not want to disappoint them.
– We are therefore working to make adjustments in the composition so that it will be more similar to the original. We hope to have the improvements ready as soon as possible, she writes in an e-mail to DinSide.
Kjerringråd classic
Vademecum was previously produced by Tomten AS in Sandvika, a subsidiary of Tomten Fabriker in Gothenburg.
In addition to Vademecum, Tomten was behind other classic Norwegian brands such as Bio-Tex and Tomtegløgg.
Mouthwash has an ardent following, and has long been an important ingredient in a number of women’s advice, or life hacks if you will, and Startsiden.no has collected a number of them.
We have not tested and can in no way vouch for them, but if you, like Hans Bull, can not take the new one in your mouth, it may be worth a try?
Many of them catch colds, sore throats, athlete’s foot or pimples, but there are also a few other fun suggestions, such as:
- Remove ticks
- Reduce pain or itching from wasp stings and mosquito bites
- Remove ballpoint pen strokes
- Wash white shoe soles