National Candy Day: Some Sweet Facts You Should Know

Every year on November 4, we celebrate National Candy Day, though we don't need a day for candy, which is always a part of our nostalgia and life.

They may come in different avatars -- hard, chewy, fruit-flavored, melt-in-your-mouth or gummies -- but candy has always been a delight of the sweet-toothed.

Though the history of candy in the U.S. has many versions, some say candy became popular in the West only in the 18th century. It first came to America in the 18th century from France and Britain. Then, only a few could enjoy these treats as very few colonists were skilled in sugar work. But, by the 1830s, Industrial Revolution was in full swing which popularised candy.

Here are some interesting facts about candy.

1) Good & Plenty is believed to be the oldest candy brand in the USA. The pink-and-white capsule-shaped chewy licorice was first produced in 1893 in Philadelphia.

2) The first candies were medicinal! An apothecary in the 18th century would prescribe you sugar candy for things like chest ailments or digestion problems. For consuming unpleasant medicines, something like a concoction of herbs that might not taste very good, the apothecary would suspend it in sugar, according to Smithsonian Magazine.

3) The Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bar was introduced in 1900 by Milton Hershey.

4) During Ronald Reagan’s 1981 inauguration, Jelly Belly served more than 3 tons of jelly beans. That's because the president developed a love of jelly beans after he started eating them to kick his smoking habit.

5) Every Halloween, 600 million pounds of candy are sold in America. Ironically, Halloween was not really about candies until the late 1940s. It was only after that the trick-or-treating became widespread on a national scale. And even then, candy wasn't the obvious treat.

6) According to Forbes, Reese's Cups were America's favorite Halloween candy for 2021. A sales data by Candystore.com, a bulk candy retailer, said though each state has its own favorite treat, Reese’s Cups topped the list. Skittles, M&M’s, Starburst and Hot Tamales round out the top five.