Candy Confidential: 10 Sweet History Facts

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, the ultimate chocolate and peanut butter mix, started from need, not desire.

In the early 1900s, H.B. Reese began.He had a family of 16 children.He needed income. Desperate, he moved jobs until he landed at the Hershey Chocolate Company in Pennsylvania. This job taught him about the candy business.

Reese used that knowledge well. He started his own candy company.He began his own candy company.He tested recipes from his home.He tested recipes from his home.His signature product became peanut butter cups.

Hershey's actions brought everything full circle.Hershey's ultimately bought the Reese's company.

The Aztec people, calling themselves the Mexica, loved chocolate more than anyone. Cacao beans, which make chocolate, held great value for the Aztecs.They used the beans as currency.The beans held more value to the Aztecs than gold.The beans held more value to the Aztecs than gold.The beans held more value to the Aztecs than gold.

The Aztecs did not just trade cocoa beans; they also ate cocoa-based items. One luxury drink was a chocolatey beverage.One luxury drink was a chocolatey beverage.They drank this.They called it "xocoatl" in their native Nahuatl language.Europeans changed the Nahuatl word to create "chocolate." This shows how "xocoatl" became "chocolate."

The first modern chewing gum started developing in the 1860s.The first modern chewing gum began development.Chicago-based Wrigley's produced gum successfully in the late 19th century.Chicago-based Wrigley's produced gum successfully in the late 19th century.

A rival company wanted a unique gum to stand out. Owner Frank Fleer made gum people could blow into bubbles. In 1906, he debuted one bubble gum version.In 1906, he debuted one bubble gum version.That bubbly gum failed with customers. Fleer's company figured out a workable bubble gum recipe in 1928.Fleer's company figured out a workable bubble gum recipe.Fleer's company figured out a workable bubble gum recipe.

The lollipop got its name from an unexpected source, like many candies.

Lollipops, or hard candy on sticks, existed for centuries. Only in 1908 did people call them "Lolly Pops." Candymaker George Smith named his hard candies on a stick after Lolly Pop, a local racehorse.George Smith named his hard candies on a stick after Lolly Pop, a local racehorse.He filed paperwork in 1931 to make the name official.He filed paperwork to make the name official.

Smith's company sold lollipops for a penny a pop when they first debuted them.Smith's company sold lollipops for a penny a pop.Smith's company sold lollipops for a penny a pop when he first debuted them.

Pop Rocks release carbon dioxide to "pop" in your mouth. This release has caused some to wrongly think it is dangerous to eat, especially with soda.Some wrongly think it is dangerous to eat Pop Rocks.The company launched a campaign to clear up that myth and assure people Pop Rocks were safe.The company launched a campaign to clear up that myth and assure people Pop Rocks were safe.Pop Rocks needed this to clear up the myth and assure people they were safe to eat.

While eating the candy is safe, producing it is another matter.Workers use intense heat, pressure, and heavy sledgehammers to make the hard candy.Workers use intense heat, pressure, and heavy sledgehammers to make the hard candy. This created a risky work environment when the candy first developed.Marv Rudolph, the developer, faced this.Marv Rudolph,

Workers risked losing fingers at the Pop Rocks factory. One worker lost a finger when it got crushed between a cooling tube and a steel beam. They handled 300-degree molten candy with 600 pounds of pressure. A leak meant serious injury for many.

Pop Rocks are not for weak people. The candy has a certain quality.Carbon dioxide creates air bursts. These bursts make a "popping" sound, like an eruption. Pop Rocks' explosive nature mixed with a 1970s food item. This created one of the strangest urban legends in 20th-century pop culture.The popping sound made by Pop Rocks seemed explosive. This matched another 1970s food item. This combination sparked a strange urban legend in pop culture.

In the 1970s, Life Cereal ran a successful ad campaign. Television commercials showed the cereal.The commercials featured a kid named Mikey.Mikey ate the cereal, showing he liked it.

A rumor spread that Mikey's stomach exploded after mixing Pop Rocks and soda.That rumor was false.However, the rumor spread enough to affect things.The rumor hurt Pop Rocks' sales in 1979.Former Pop Rocks business manager Jerry Saltzgaber said, "When that story hit the country, it was like, 'Bam!'"

Pop Rocks sales increased sharply.The company stopped the rumor. They told the public the product was safe. Poor sales in the 1980s stopped production, but they brought the candy back to stores.

Cotton candy has one of the most descriptive names among candies. It looks and feels like cotton, even though the taste is different.

Cotton candy's first name was more imaginative than descriptive: Fairy Floss. The "floss" part comes from its 1897 development.William Morrison invented it. He was a dentist.The candy's high sugar content might explain the "fairy" part of the name.

Morrison and his partner, confectioner John Wharton, chose "Fairy Floss" for the product name. That name did not last. In 1921, rival candy maker Josef Lascaux made his own version of "Fairy Floss."Lascaux called his version something else.He called it "Cotton Candy."

Baby Ruth stays one of the best-known candy bars. Its name sounds similar to the legendary baseball player Babe Ruth.

The name similarity did not stop the slugger from starting a candy company. However, a lawsuit from Baby Ruth ended that dream.A quick lawsuit from Baby Ruth ended the dream.The lawsuit put that dream to rest.

People debate how much Baby Ruth was actually named after the Great Bambino. Otto Schnering, who made Baby Ruth, stated his position.Otto Schnering went on record to say he did not name the candy after the baseball player.Schnering stated he did not name the candy after the baseball player.

The bar got its name from Baby Ruth, the first baby of the White House in Cleveland, from the Grover Cleveland administration. At the time, someone suggested Babe Ruth, though not a big figure then, might help sell Baby Ruth.

Many think naming a candy bar after a president's daughter who hasn't served in over twenty years makes no sense.

Ruth reportedly yelled after the verdict, "Well, I ain't eatin' your d***ed candy bar anymore!"

Cadbury Creme Eggs have been a springtime favorite for decades. They offer a chocolate shell filled with ooey, gooey, creamy goodness.

Some people questioned Cadbury eggs' size over the years. In 2007, actor/writer B.J. Novak went as far as toaccuse Cadbury of shrinking its eggs.Novak said Cadbury seemed to gaslight customers who raised concerns. He pointed out thatCadbury's website rejected the claims.of size changes by telling customers, "Why has the size of the egg changed? It hasn't - you've just grown up!"

Cadbury admitted in 2019 toThe eggs decrease in size.to lower prices for consumers.

People who grew up in the 1990s recall commercials calling Mentos mints the "Freshmaker." These ads filled '90s pop culture so much that they wereeven mentioned in the 1995 teen movieClueless..

Mentos ads were everywhere and well known. However, this does not mean people loved them all. Some American people found the ads cheesy.scorned them..

Love beat hate. The "Freshmaker" campaign helped the mint company.significantly increasing Mentos sales.This boosted Mentos.