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Candy has a rich history dating back thousands of years, with ancient civilizations like the Egyptians, Chinese, and Greeks enjoying honey-based confections and fruit preserves.
The modern candy industry emerged in the 19th century with innovations like chocolate bars, lollipops, and mass-produced sweets, leading to famous candy brands and treats .
Necco Wafers, first produced in 1847 and originally called "hub wafers," have a surprisingly patriotic history—they were carried by Union soldiers during the Civil War and later ordered by the U.S. government for soldiers overseas during World War II, leading to peak sales.
The iconic candy's production was suspended in 2018 when the New England Confectionery Company went bankrupt. However it made a sweet comeback in 2020 after being purchased by the Spangler Candy Company.
Founded in 1869 by German immigrant Gustav Goelitz, Jelly Belly evolved from a small confectionery to a global jelly bean empire.
It famously became President Reagan's favorite candy and the first jelly beans in space, while also creating wild flavors like vomit, earwax, and draft beer.
Candy corn, originally called "Chicken Feed" and invented in the 1880s, has evolved from a year-round penny candy to a polarizing Halloween staple.
Brach's now produces a mind-boggling 7 billion pieces annually (85% of the market share) and even releasing bizarre flavors like hot dog and hamburger in their "tailgate" variant.
Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bars were first sold in 1900, after Milton Hershey decided to get into the chocolate business upon seeing chocolate manufacturing machinery at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago.
The distinct "tangy" flavor of Hershey's chocolate, which some liken to the taste of vomit, comes from the use of butyric acid to stabilize the milk and prevent further fermentation.
Tootsie Rolls, created in 1907 by Austrian Jewish immigrant Leo Hirschfield who named them after his daughter Clara "Tootsie”.
It became America's first penny candy to be individually wrapped.
Tragically, Hirschfield later shot himself in a hotel room in 1922.
Toblerone, the iconic triangular Swiss chocolate bar was invented in 1908 by Theodor Tobler and his cousin Emil Baumann.
It was inspired by either the Matterhorn mountain or dancers at the Folies Bergère.
Rumors have it that the patent was processed by Albert Einstein.
It was initially advertised in the constructed languages Esperanto and Ido.
Lifesavers, the iconic ring-shaped candy invented in 1912 by Clarence Crane (father of poet Hart Crane) as a "summer candy" that could withstand heat better than chocolate.
It has a colorful history that includes being promoted in saloons and cigar stores, helping Allied soldiers during World War II when other candy makers donated their sugar rations to keep it in production.
Baby Ruth candy bars were introduced in 1921 by the Curtiss Candy Company, who claimed they were named after President Grover Cleveland's daughter Ruth rather than the famous baseball player Babe Ruth, likely to avoid paying the slugger any royalties.
To promote the candy bar in 1923, Curtiss founder Otto Schnering chartered a plane to drop thousands of Baby Ruth bars attached to miniature parachutes over the city of Pittsburgh.
Butterfinger, invented in 1923 by Otto Schnering through a public naming contest.
It has had a wild journey including being dropped from airplanes as a publicity stunt, promoted by Shirley Temple and advertised by The Simpsons for over a decade.
It was temporarily banned in Germany due to GMO concerns, and even briefly released as a caffeine-infused "Buzz" version containing as much caffeine as an energy drink.
The Milky Way chocolate bar, created in 1923 and named after a popular milkshake rather than the galaxy.
It has a fascinating history including a floating global version advertised for its buoyancy in milk, a US version with caramel that was once marketed as a snack that wouldn't ruin your appetite.
Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, created in 1928 by former Hershey dairy farmer H.B. Reese.
They have become a global candy powerhouse with $3.1 billion in annual sales, spawning countless variations including a half-pound cup and even inspiring a breakfast cereal.
The Reese brothers' original 666,316 shares from the 1963 merger with Hershey have ballooned to 16 million shares worth over $4.4 billion today.
In 1930, Mars introduced Snickers, named after the Mars family's favorite horse, which went on to become one of the world's best-selling candy bars.
They have inspired everything from deep-fried fair food to a controversial Super Bowl ad featuring mechanics accidentally kissing, and even prompting a massive product recall in Australia due to fears of rat poison contamination.
The 3 Musketeers bar, introduced in 1932 and named after Alexandre Dumas' novel, originally contained three flavors (chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla) until wartime sugar restrictions led to the elimination of strawberry and vanilla—leaving only the popular chocolate flavor—which has remained its signature ever since.
Twizzlers, introduced in 1929 by one of America's oldest confectionery companies (founded in 1845).
They have an intriguing history that includes the creation of a record-breaking 1,200-foot-long, 100-pound licorice twist in 1998.
A surprising shift to strawberry as the dominant flavor (accounting for 70% of production despite not being the original licorice flavor).
Junior Mints, invented in 1949 by food chemist Charles Vaughan for the James O. Welch Company has a peculiar connection to Broadway and the John Birch Society.
They were named after the play "Junior Miss" and the company's co-founder, Robert W. Welch Jr. who later left the candy business to establish the controversial right-wing organization.
Atomic Fireballs, introduced in 1954 by the Ferrara Pan Candy Company, were named to reflect the era's fascination with nuclear power and marketed as a "powerful" candy with a Scoville rating of 3,500, making them as spicy as jalapeño peppers.
These fiery candies became the "Console Candy of Choice" for NASA employees in the late 1980s to keep flight controllers alert during long shifts.
They are also traditionally included with ticket orders for the quirky and communal Burning Man festival.
Rolo, the chocolate-covered caramel candy, was first manufactured by Mackintosh's in Norwich, England in 1937 before the brand was acquired by a succession of confectionery giants including Rowntree, Nestlé, and Hershey.
The brand's advertising history includes a long-running slogan asking "Do you love anyone enough to give them your last Rolo?.”
The Nestlé Crunch chocolate bar, first introduced in 1938, was originally produced by Nestlé at their Fulton factory in the United States.
It has been manufactured under license by the Ferrara Candy Company in the US since 2018 after Nestlé sold its American confectionery brands for $2.8 billion.
Nestlé discontinued the traditional packaging of the Crunch bar that used aluminum foil and a paper sleeve in favor of metallized polyester film at an unknown date.
M&M's, created in 1941 as a way for soldiers to carry chocolate without it melting.
They have been sent to space, having red ones removed for a decade due to unfounded health concerns, and featuring custom-printed presidential versions given as White House souvenirs since 1988.
Pop Rocks, a candy invented in 1961 by General Foods chemists that uses pressurized carbon dioxide bubbles to create a popping sensation.
They became the subject of an urban legend claiming it could cause stomachs to explode when combined with soda—a myth so pervasive that the FDA set up a hotline to reassure concerned parents. The TV show MythBusters even tested it by mixing Pop Rocks and cola inside a pig's stomach.
Starburst, originally launched as Opal Fruits in the UK in 1959, has undergone several name changes and flavor evolutions, including a viral marketing campaign featuring a Victorian-dressed man performing the "Little Lad Dance”.
They were banned in the European Union in 2022 due to concerns about titanium dioxide potentially damaging DNA and leading to cancer.
Astro Pops were created in 1963 by two rocket scientists who quit their jobs to make the rocket-shaped lollipops, capitalizing on the 1960s Space Race craze and selling millions.
The hot candy is poured directly into the cone wrapper which becomes the mold, a stick is inserted, and the pop is capped with wax.
In 2000 the owner Spangler Candy decided to reverse the shape, placing the stick at the tip rather than the base to provide "more surface area to lick".
Twix, originally introduced in the UK in 1967 and later in the US in 1979, has an intriguing history of dual identities.
It was known as "Raider" in mainland Europe for many years until 1991 (and as late as 2000 in some countries), only to have the Raider brand briefly resurrected for retro editions in various European countries between 2009 and 2023.
Skittles, originally created in Britain in 1974 and named after a bowling game, became a global phenomenon after Mars began producing them in the United States in 1982.
They quickly gained popularity for their fruit flavors and iconic "Taste the Rainbow" slogan.
Hershey's Kisses were first produced in 1907, and during World War II production was halted so the machines could make chocolate D-ration bars for soldiers, producing over 3 billion of them by the end of the war.
The iconic paper strip "plume" was added to the Kisses' foil wrapper in 1921 to distinguish them from imitators.
In 1989 Hershey's debuted their now classic Christmas commercial featuring Kisses chocolates ringing as bells to "We Wish You a Merry Christmas", which has aired every holiday season since. Making it their longest-running TV ad.
In a sugar-coated twist of fate, Sour Patch Kids began life as "Mars Men" in the 1970s before being rebranded in 1985 to capitalize on the Cabbage Patch Kids craze.
They have since spawned a video game, ice cream, cereal, and even Oreos, with the French whimsically dubbing them "Very Bad Kids."
Kit Kat, a chocolate-covered wafer bar confection, was created by Rowntree's of York, England in 1935.
It is now produced globally by Nestlé, except in the United States where it is made under license by the Hershey Company.
The brand has become known for its wild flavor variations, particularly in Japan where Nestlé has introduced over 300 different flavors since 2000, including soy sauce, wasabi, and cough drop.
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