*Update for 2020 – Remember to buy local especially in 2020, support your community and enjoy their offerings. Bonus – you get to try their unique varieties before gifting.
What’s the most popular?
There are many types of candies associated with Christmas and consumers feel strongly about what they love and what they hate. I’m decidedly not a marzipan fan, for example. I thought you might want to know which ones were voted the best and worst so you can be savvy candy consumers. If you are planning on having Christmas candies around over the holidays, it might be wise to check the lists of best and worst and avoid a candy disaster.
In the eight weeks leading up to Christmas, The National Confectioners Association says that an estimated $1.93 billion will be spent on candy. That is an average of $110 per person. I love candy and next to Halloween, Christmas is my favorite candy time of year. A website called the CandyStore (an online bulk candy retailer) did a survey of 13,000 of their customers to learn the top ten worst Christmas candies. The number one hated Christmas candy was the Christmas tree nougat candy. Other unpopular candies were Christmas tree peeps, reindeer corn, peppermint bark (I happen to like peppermint bark!), ribbon candy (I like that too!) and chocolate-covered cherry cordials. Peppermint candy canes (among my favorites!) were given honorable mention due to their difficulty in unwrapping, and how sticky they make your fingers.
If you are hosting a party this season, you might be interested in learning which Christmas candy is the most popular in the state you live in. The same website, CandyStore, surveyed over 50,000 of their customers to find out which candy was the most popular in each of the 50 states. For example, in Connecticut, M & M’s were in the first place, followed by Hershey’s Kisses, and candy canes in third place. In California, peppermint bark was in the first place, M & M’s in second place and Hershey’s Kisses in third place. Arizona ranks Pez as it’s favorite Christmas candy – go figure! New York votes Skittles as its number one, candy canes as number two and Pez in third place. I love to have a bowl of those little red hot candies around and I didn’t see them mentioned anywhere.
Here’s hoping there are no holiday candy faux pas committed at your holiday party.
We love the favorites and look forward Hershey’s has some new offerings for the holidays. Find them here; Hershey’s New Christmas Candy 2020
Check out these two ASE articles on where to buy exceptional candy online.
Where to buy exceptional candy online
All Photos Courtesy of CandyStore