It’s that time of year again; leaves are falling, Thanksgiving is almost here, and Halloween is right around the corner. It’s this time of year that I think about one of the most popular icons of Fall – Candy Corn! This creamy smooth confection has been around forever and is highly popular but where did it come from and how is it made?

Candy corn was first invented around 1880 by George Renninger, an employee at Wunderlee Candy Company of Philadelphia. By the 19th century the Goelitz Candy Company (now Jelly Belly Candy Company) started producing their version of candy corn confection on a regular basis. Founder Gustav Goelitz, a German immigrant, began commercial production of candy corn in Cincinnati and is today the oldest manufacturer of candy corn. After World War Two Gustav’s son, Herman, started his own Candy Corn making branch in Fairfield, California. They proceeded to keep afloat and not going bankrupt even during the Great Depression and the Sugar Shortage crisis of the mid-1970’s!

During the late 1880’s to early-1900’s candy corn was made by combining corn syrup, sugar, fondant, marshmallow, specific coloring, and other ingredients into a large kettle. That would make about 45 pounds of hot candy which is then poured into buckets (called runners). Certain workers (called stringers) would haul the runners across the candy kernel molds to a total of three times for each colored candy corn layer. Candy corn would then be set out to dry then packed into wooden boxes, cartons, or tubs for short distance distribution. Candy corn is made pretty much the same today except that stringers are replaced by robots. The machinery would fill the candy corn mold a third of the way with one color, let it settle, fill the second layer with a second color and let it settle, and then the third color would top of the top. Then the candy corn is allowed to cool and then is removed from the mold and sent to distribution.

Candy corn is a popular staple today. According to National Confectioners Association, in 2001 candy manufacturers sold more than 20 million pounds of candy corn. Roughly 8.3 billion kernels! More than 35 million pounds of candy corn will be produced this year. That equates to nearly 9 billion pieces—enough to circle the moon nearly 21 times if laid end-to-end.  Also, 75 percent of all candy corn made is during Halloween season, although candy corn is made all year around and comes in many different colors. There’s Indian Corn (chocolate and vanilla), Easter Corn (pastel colors), Cupid Corn for Valentine’s Day (Red, Pink, and White), and Reindeer Corn for Christmas (red, green, and white)!

Candy corn also only has 3.57 calories per kernel, making it a relatively healthy candy in comparison to other popular confections. Also according to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, candy corn is no different than a slice of bread, bowl of cereal or a cracker when it comes to causing tooth decay. National Candy Corn day is October 30th, so don’t forget to get your candy corn before then so you can celebrate a healthy American Heritage!

(Sources: Jelly Belly Company, Candy USA.Org, Haunted Bay.Com)

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