Edible ties selling like hotcakes in Georgia

A new "edible and reformatory tie" was presented in Georgia's capital of Tbilisi on Tuesday in a spoof to a picture of President Mikheil Sakaashvili chewing his tie during the Russian-Georgian war in 2008. The two culinary inventors of the edible tie, Levan Cholokashvili from the Coalition for a European Georgia and Oleg Panfilov, a journalist, presented their work in a clear plastic package. The tie is made out of dried fruit juice and pulp and is similar to fruit wraps prepared on plastic wrap in the United States. "This summer, Mr. Panfilov and I were at my country home when my wife was making fruit wraps and the idea of making an 'edible tie' came to his mind," Cholokashvili said, adding: "Then we quickly made up the design, decided how to cut it and package it and a short time later we patented it and began producing them for sale." The description of the new culinary accessory says that it is "a new information-satisfying product filled with vitamins." Each tie has instructions in Georgian, Russian and English that informs the buyer that "regular use" of the tie will aid in reforming your life, increasing its quality and bring you to democratic values. Cholokashvili said the first batch of ties made two weeks ago were a big hit in Georgia and have already been sold out. He said that the entire family takes part in preparing the edible ties. Saakashvili was caught on camera in August 2008 nervously chewing his garment while discussing the Georgian-Russian conflict by telephone with a top Western official. Saakashvili caused an internet sensation with his tie-chewing antics, which were aired by the BBC.