PRmaniac,
You may be right, but wouldn't that mean that all gum would then fall under that category? I would think the combination of ingredients would have the patent, not the delivery system.
I may be looking at this wrong, but let's say we are dealing with a new medicine that must be administered via a shot. The drug company could patent the medication, but the use of a needle and syringe to deliver it would NOT require a patent.
Just food for thought.