Hershey has joined Mars, Coke and Pepsi as a sponsor of the American Dietetic Association, which bills itself as “world’s largest organization of food and nutrition professionals,” and says its goal is to “optimize the nation’s health through food and nutrition.” Hershey? Nutrition? Actually, it’s the Hershey Center for Health and Nutrition, which is devoted to “the sweet science of chocolate.” Hey, we can live with that. [More]
At Walgreens, Every Holiday Is Hanukkah!
By April 7, 2010
Michael says his local Walgreens in Illinois can’t seem to unload its inventory of last year’s Hanukkah candy–so it just brings it back out with every other holiday. [More]
Andes Struggles With Apparent Mint Shortage
By March 1, 2010
Roger is annoyed that the package of Andes mints he bought is much larger than it needs to be. In fact, it looks suspiciously like the company is trying to convince the casual observer that there are more mints inside than there really are. I’m not sure how making a consumer feel disappointed about a candy purchase is good for repeat business, but maybe parent company Tootsie hopes you’ll eat a mint and forget the sadness. [More]
Learn What Candy To Eat With This Flowchart
By December 24, 2009
The blog Eating The Road continues to churn out amazingly helpful flowcharts to guide you with pretty much everything you can put in your belly. The latest is the Candy Edition, and you probably won’t be surprised to see where candy corn and circus peanuts end up.
Others we’ve missed since we last checked in: the Beer Edition and the Freezer Aisle Edition.
You Must Buy Candy At Checkout
By December 10, 2009
A group of candy makers, publishers, and others threw down some cash on a study to find out what the big impulse buys are at checkout counters. The not-so-surprising results: candy topped the list, at 30% of all purchases. Hey, it’s their money. [More]
How Will You Get Rid Of Leftover Halloween Candy?
By November 2, 2009
If you faced a shortage of trick-or-treaters Saturday night, or are overwhelmed by the stash your own offspring brought home, you may be asking yourself, what the heck am I going to do with all this crap? You could always teach the kids a valuable life lesson by letting them chow down on candy until they get sick, but there are some better — and easier to clean up — solutions.
Vaginal Mints Are A Very, Very Bad Idea
By October 24, 2009
Jen Philips over at Mother Jones received a sample of an exciting new candy from a PR rep. Called Linger, it bills itself as “the intimate mint.” Or “feminine flavoring system.” Because you’re supposed to put it in your vagina.
Guy Finds Worms In Hershey's Bar
By October 9, 2009
Des Moines, Iowa TV station KCCI did a story on a man who opened up his Hershey’s Bar to find living worms writhing around inside.
Candy or Medicine?
By September 14, 2009
I suppose we can’t expect little kids to tell the difference, huh? The University of Rochester Strong Memorial Hospital and the Finger Lakes Regional Poison & Drug Information Center created this chart to help you grown-ups test your ability to identify delicious candies vs pharmaceuticals. It must have been sort of fun to find ones that matched.
5-Pound Gummi Bear Yet Another Example Of Misleading Bulk Pricing
By September 2, 2009
You might think that by purchasing your gummi candy in the most bulk form possible—as a single 5 pound bear-shaped block—you’ll be saving money. After all, the catalog page says this little fella is equivalent to approximately 1400 regular-sized gummi bears. But actually, it turns out a 5 pound bag of Haribo gummis on Amazon is less than half the price (if you get super saver shipping).
Food Companies Warn Of Impending Sugar Shortage, Misery, Doom
By August 13, 2009
The food companies say we are on the brink of a sugar shortage that will wreak havoc on your candy bars and all that. According to the WSJ several large food companies including Kraft Foods Inc., General Mills Inc., Hershey Co. and Mars Inc. sent a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack warning that the US could run out of sugar if we don’t get rid of some tariffs.
Blue Food Coloring Used In M&Ms Has Actual Medical Use
By July 29, 2009
Now, you know what they say about green M&Ms. That isn’t true. But have you heard what they say about blue M&Ms? That the dye they contain can help the body to repair damage from spinal cord injuries? That one’s true. Oh, and the dye also turns rodents blue.
Teen Finds Cocaine In CVS Candy Aisle
By July 24, 2009
A 14-year-old in Middleburg, Florida, went to buy some Skittles at a CVS and found a small bag of cocaine next to the candy. Police have reviewed the security tapes, but say the store’s cameras don’t cover the candy aisle. As if sugar doesn’t make them hyper enough already.
It's Free Chocolate Friday From Mars
By July 17, 2009
Fork over your personal information and the Mars chocolate company will snail mail you a free coupon for one full-sized Mars candy bar in 6 weeks. We mentioned this in Morning Deals in May, it’s still going on, and will continue on Fridays through September. They’re calling it the “Real Chocolate Relief Act,” a tie-in to two different news stories: 1) Economic bailout plans and 2) Some corner-cutting candymakers not using 100% cocoa butter and putting more oil inside – a basterdization known as “mocklate.”
By July 7, 2009
Pez Candy is suing the Pez musuem in Burlingame, CA for copyright infringement. The museum has a 7-foot-tall Pez dispenser that they want destroyed. Maybe Pez should make a new candy flavor called “Copyright Overkill” that tastes like all the joy has been removed. [Laughing Squid] (Thanks to sizer!) (Photo: Hryck.)
By July 6, 2009
Hershey is closing its online store (www.hersheygifts.com) at the end of the month, saying they can’t keep it running in this economy. If you like their “chocolate” products, everything on the site is on sale for 25% off. [LA Times] (Thanks to Robert!)
Sam's Club Apologizes For Candy-In-Prescription-Bottles Promo
By June 25, 2009
We have also shared with all of our pharmacy departments that this is an unacceptable practice and should not be repeated. At Sam’s Club we always have the health and welfare of our customers and members in mind with everything we do and we deeply regret that this incident occurred.
