The origins of candy corn: A divisive delicacy, destined to be a Halloween tradition

Candy corn: Is it a treat or some kind of trick candy makers are playing on us?

The question arises because the candy is truly divisive. But those who love it are delighted by the approach of Halloween.

Michael Byars, a public radio host in Kansas City, Missouri describes candy corn as "pure sugary deliciousness that reminds me of my youth – when everything was simple and easy and the worries and stresses and fears of adulthood weren’t even on the radar."

On the other side of the candy corn issue is Johner Riehl, a public relations executive in San Diego, California. "As I look at a piece of candy corn, I feel bad for the sugar, corn syrup and industrial dye that were all congealed together to form a waxy, chewy and gross wedge that resembles (and tastes like) a safety cone more than it does a piece of corn," he said.

Many of us are in the middle, like Mark Neese, a library assistant from Lansing, Michigan. "Candy corn is something I never even think about until October, but I actually kind of enjoy it (in limited quantities)," he shared. "I don't think it deserves all the grief and disparagement it receives."

Candy corn: An 'iconic Halloween treat'

For many, candy corn represents the reason for the Halloween season. Most of the 9 billion kernels, more than 35 million pounds produced annually according to past pronouncements by the National Confectioners Association, are eaten around Halloween.

During the year, candy corn doesn't get much respect. But candy corn elbows its way onto center stage with the arrival of fall and advent of Halloween. It's the No. 3 rated Halloween treat, behind chocolate and gummy candy, the National Confectioners Association found in a July survey of 1,500 U.S. respondents (and an oversampling of parents).

"Whether you love candy corn or prefer to give yours away, there’s no denying that it’s one of the most iconic Halloween treats you can enjoy throughout the season," NCA spokesperson Carly Schildhaus told USA TODAY.

Candy corn was the most popular Halloween candy last year on Amazon, garnering 16% of demand, followed by Gummy Bears, Sour Patch Kids and Skittles, according to ecommerce tech company Pattern. "No other sweet captured more share of online consumer demand during the month of October 2022 than candy corn – a strong indicator of what we’re likely to see repeat this year," the company said in its report. 

And the love of candy corn can be seen online, too. On Instagram, there's more than 600,000 posts carrying the hashtag #candy corn displaying artwork, pictures, recipes and more about the candy.

Candy corn: It's costing more this Halloween

Like everything else, candy corn is costing more this Halloween season than in the past. Candy corn prices are up about 13% from a year ago, according to Platform. In comparison, Hershey's Kisses prices have risen 6.75% and Gummy Bears 5.58%, Platform found.

Brach's Candy corn price were 19% higher than a year ago in transactions tracked by commerce data platform Attain, formerly named Klover. At Walmart, the candy was 11% higher, the company found. Data firm NIQ has similar findings: Candy corn prices were up 15% in the 52-week period ending Sept. 16, 2023, compared to the previous year.

Halloween candy:What is the 'healthiest' option? Don't get tricked by these other treats.

While candy corn makers say they plan to produce as much candy as in the past, sales by volume dropped about 8% in the most recent 52-week period compared to a year ago, according to NIQ, which tracks sales in U.S. supermarkets, drug stores and mass merchandise stores. But with price increases, consumers spent more on average, $2.62 per unit compared to $2.27 the previous year.

Compared to chocolate, candy corn is a niche snack. While sales of chocolate topped $15.4 billion, during the 52-week period ending Sept. 16, 2023, candy corn sales hit $59.3 million. In comparison, candy canes ($127 million) and licorice ($411 million) also surpass candy corn in sales, according to NIQ.

Higher prices won't likely deter those who love candy corn. But that sweet, waxy texture isn't for everyone. And investigating how the candy is made might give some pause – confectioner's glaze on the treat contains a bug secretion.

What ingredients are in candy corn? Bones and bugs?

Not technically. But maybe some disdain candy corn because it has some fairly scary ingredients. Of course, there's sugar, corn syrup, salt, sesame oil, honey, artificial flavor, and food colorings.

Two other ingredients? Gelatin and confectioner's glaze. Those two items have led some candy corn detractors to note that candy corn is made of animal hides and bones, like Jell-O gelatin. And confectioner's glaze, also known as shellac, is made from lac-resin, which – are you ready for this? – is a bug secretion. The lac bug, a parasite found in tropical and subtropical regions, according to news site Science Daily, secretes a waxy, waterproof coating to protect itself.

Workers scrape those secretions from plants and, as education site ThoughtCo.com notes, some of the bugs are gathered in the process. The shellac is also used in paints, cosmetics and plenty of other products, according to The Vegetarian Resource Group.

Wait, bug secretions in my candy? Yes. "It's not unusual at all," Paul Adams, a senior editor at Cook's Illustrated Magazine, which is published by America's Test Kitchen, told USA TODAY in 2022. "The lac insect produces a shiny, durable resin that's used as the basis for all kinds of coatings: the words 'shellac' and 'lacquer' both come from the name of the bug."

Typically found under the name "confectioner's glaze" or "pure food glaze," lac coating on all sorts of shiny candies including jelly beans, Milk Duds and Whoppers, and is used in making gum, Adams said. "It's also responsible for the glossy coating on many pharmaceutical pills, as well as citrus fruits and cosmetics."

Good news for chocolate lovers: M&M's do not use the substance.

The caloric breakdown: Each piece of candy corn has 4 calories, according to Jelly Belly. But Brach's puts the caloric count at about 7, since 15 pieces add up to 105 calories on its packaging of Classic Candy Corn. That serving has 23 grams of sugar – experts recommend no more than 25 grams per day. 

The origins of candy corn

Candy corn cropped up in the late 19th century. Most histories have the Wunderle Candy Co. of Philadelphia inventing the kernel-shaped treat in the 1880s.

The Goelitz Confectionery Co. in Cincinnati acquired the recipe and began making candy corn about 1898, according to National Geographic. The Goelitz Confectionery Co. changed its name to the Jelly Belly Candy Co. in 2001.

Decades ago, candy corn was a year-round candy called "chicken feed," and aimed at agricultural and rural families, according to History.com. (You can see Jelly Belly vice chairman Bill Kelley, the great-grandson of Gustav Goelitz and a fourth generation candy maker, talk about candy corn in an CBS Sunday Morning video from 2011.) 

"It wasn’t made for fall, but it became a fall thing ultimately," Marie Wright, chief global flavorist at food processing company ADM, which makes corn syrup, sweeteners and natural flavorings and colorings used in candy corn, told USA TODAY.

Originally, candy corn was made by hand with candy makers pouring a sequence of passes of different colored hot edible icing called fondant into kernel-shaped molds, according to Jelly Belly, which claims to be the longest continuous maker of the candy and will make about 250,000 pounds, or 125 tons, of it this year. 

Today, candy corn is made the same way – using essentially the same recipe – by machines. Where some candies' flavors change over time, candy corn "tastes exactly how I remember it. Everybody says the flavor doesn’t change," Wright shared.

Brach's has new Fall Festival candy corn flavors

Brach's claims to sell the most candy corn and says it makes 88% of the candy corn sold in the U.S. Each year, the candy maker says about 30 million pounds of candy corn, enough to encircle the Earth about five times.

Founded in 1904, Brach's advertised in 1932 that it was selling eight ounces of Candy Corn for 10 cents.

This year, Brach's has a new Fall Festival Candy Corn mix with six new flavors: Kettle Corn, Caramel Apple, Cotton Candy, Lemonade Shake-Up, Strawberry Funnel Cake, and Lemon-Lime Snowcone. This is in addition to its Classic Candy Corn and Harvest Corn, which is made with cocoa butter and a brown section replacing the yellow.

Is candy corn the worst candy? Maybe to some

Those who despise candy corn can cherish that it's among the Worst Halloween Candy, landing the No. 2 spot behind the most despised candy, circus peanuts, those orange peanut-shaped marshmallow spongy candies, according to CandyStore.com. That's an improvement for candy corn, which held the top spot in 2021 and 2022. Favorite Halloween candy? Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

My own unscientific poll on X, formerly known as Twitter, found half of the 50 respondents said they loved candy corn. 40% agreed it was an "abomination," while 10% "could care less."

Perhaps those who dislike it do so because of its texture and humdrum flavor. "From a sensory perspective, the hatred of candy corn can be explained because, unlike many candies, its flavor profile doesn't incorporate contrast," Adams told USA TODAY. "It's just intensely sweet-tasting, which can produce palate fatigue, like eating spoonfuls of honey or sugar."

Yet, for those who love candy corn, the treat can be transportive, says Adams, who recalls his mother eating just the white tips of each piece. "Why is it loved as much as hated? If you grew up eating it, it probably has delightful associations in your mind," he said.

And there's just something about candy corn. "Even the haters still want to have bowls of it at home because it signifies fall. There's this nostalgia thing. But if you ask them if they are going to eat it …" ADM's Wright said.

"It's fun to observe this emotional reaction to this tiny little nothing candy," she shared.

Follow Mike Snider on X and Threads: @mikesnider & mikegsnider.

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