Once the ghosts, skeletons and witches start making their appearance in stores, so does the candy. Americans buy 600 million pounds of candy each year. Some types of candy are more popular than others and the facts behind these favorite treats will make you want to run out and say “Trick-or-Treat,” and enjoy some delicious goodness yourself. To get yourself in the Halloween mood, here some facts about classic Halloween candy.
Fun Facts About Classic Halloween Candy
1. Candy corn is the most popular Halloween candy!
Americans buy over 20 million pounds of it during the holiday. If you laid out each kernel of candy corn sold in a year, it would circle the earth more than four times.
2. Reese’s creator Harry Burnett Reese’s first stab in the candy business was a dud and he had very little success.
Now, Reese’s is often voted one of the most favorite Halloween treats.
3. There is an actual licking machine that solved the riddle of how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop.
Engineering students at Purdue University created the machine and solved the ultimate question, “How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?”. The answer: 364.
4. Originally, the 3 Musketeers candy bar came in three small pieces, each piece with a different flavor.
The original three flavors were strawberry, vanilla and chocolate.
5. Tootsie Rolls were used as part of the rations for World War II soldiers.
This was the treat of choice because it remained fresh no matter the temperature.
6. The Milky Way was named after a malted milkshake — not the galaxy.
The candy bar became extremely popular in the 1920s.
7. Kit Kats were created to easily fit in a sack lunch.
Additionally, while the bright red wrapper is well-known today, it was blue for five years.
8. M&Ms stands for the founders of the candy — Forrest Mars, Sr. and Bruce Murrie.
There are numerous theories around what the M on M&Ms stands for, and it isn’t “melt in your mouth,” as many individuals believe.
9. Dubble Bubble is pink because it was the only dye available when the candy was first created.
And despite containing some hard-to-pronounce ingredients, Dubble Bubble gum products are nut-free, gluten-free, peanut-free and kosher.
10. An elastic string holds candy necklaces together to prevent choking.
The string will expand — or break — before anyone is seriously injured.
11. The Bit-O-Honey has been around since 1924 and was made in Chicago, Illinois.
It was a unique type of candy at the time and gained instant popularity.
12. Bottle Caps were made in the 1970s and sold in large, green pouches by the Willy Wonka Candy Company.
They were made to look like a twist-off bottle cap with ridges and uneven sides.
13. Up to 12 million Dum Dums are made every single day.
The creator named these suckers Dum Dums because he thought it was a word that any child could say.
14. The flavor of the Fun Dips stick is unknown and has frequently changed.
This candy was originally known as Lik-M-Aid.
15. Runts are inspired by the “scrumdiddlyumptious” candy in the Willy Wonka books by Ronald Dahl.
Of course, the Willy Wonka Candy Company is the creator behind this well-known candy.
16. When Pixy Stix first entered the market, it was extremely unpopular with parents due to its high sugar intake.
The treat was originally intended to be a drink mix but was preferred as a form of candy.
17. Air Heads will last up to two years before they expire.
There are currently 16 flavors available.
18. Boston Baked Beans are named after a popular dish of beans cooked in brown sugar, molasses and spices.
However, the candy has no similarities to the dish.
19. More than 500 million Lemonheads are made each year.
There are eight other types of candies labeled under the Lemonhead brand including Cherryheads, Appleheads and Grapeheads.
20. Skittles were introduced in 1979 but they didn’t offer an entire rainbow of flavors.
The five original Skittle flavors include strawberry, lime, lemon, grape and orange.
21. The Ring Pop was a way for the inventor, Frank Richards, to help his daughter stop sucking her thumb.
Unfortunately, it didn’t work.
22. Laffy Taffy features a joke on each wrapper, which is why it is called “Laffy” Taffy.
Most of these jokes are written by children.
23. Admiral Byrd brought more than two tons of NECCO Wafers to the south pole in the 1930s.
This large amount of candy was to tide his men over for two years while they were away from civilization.
24. Charleston Chew is named after the Charleston, a popular dance in the early 1900s.
There are only three flavors of this candy available: chocolate, vanilla and strawberry.
25. Everlasting Gobstoppers were created and named after the candy mentioned in the book “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” by Roald Dahl.
Americans were first introduced to jawbreakers in 1976.
26. More than 750 million candy buttons are made each year.
This is a classic candy created by NECCO.
27. The machines that produce Hershey Kisses run 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
If you lined up each Kiss the company makes annually, they would form a line more than 300,000 miles long.
28. Snickers is the best-selling candy around the world with global sales totaling more than $2 billion.
This candy bar is named after founder Frank Mars’ favorite horse.
29. Nerds was officially voted the Candy of the Year in 1985.
Originally, they were only available in two flavors: cherry/orange and strawberry/grape.
30. The current Butterfinger candy bar recipe is different than when it first debuted.
Nabisco acquired Curtiss Candy, the original maker of the Butterfinger in 1981 and the original recipe was lost. Nabisco created a similar candy, which is what we know today as the Butterfinger, but it is not the original candy bar.
31. Without the wrapper, Jolly Ranchers are often mistaken for other substances.
In New York City, a couple of men were arrested for what police believed was Crystal Meth. However, it was only candy.
32. Machines can produce up to 1,000 pieces of salt water taffy a minute.
The most popular flavors of salt water are peppermint, cinnamon and chocolate.
33. Circus Peanuts helped create the beloved cereal Lucky Charms when a General Mills employee chopped up Circus Peanuts and poured it into his bowls of Cheerios.
Additionally, Circus Peanuts are one of the original penny candies and were only available in the spring until polyethylene film was invented. This creation allowed the candy to be packed and sold throughout the year.
Do you know any other facts about classic Halloween candy? Which candy is your favorite? Let us know in the comments below.
