The Gummi Bear is a proud product of Germany. It was invented in 1922 by Hans Riegel who was a candy maker from Bonn, Germany. His invention was primarily called the ‘dancing bear’. He also founded a company to manufacture his bears and called it “Haribo” which was an acronym for Hans Riegel Bonn. The bears became very popular in Germany.
It wasn’t until the 1980s that it would be manufactured in the US. Before that, American high school students learned about the ‘Dancing Bears’ in their German classes and were the first Americans to know about it. In the year 1981, the Herman Goelitz Company, which is now known as the Jelly Belly Candy Company, started to produce the first American-made Gummi bears. The following year, the Haribo Company saw the big market that was waiting in the United States and brought their business there. By this time, Gummi Bears were very accessible to the American public.
Aside from the American bears, the 1980s saw the birth of a new Gummi character. The Trolli created the Gummi Worms in 1981. The worm was the product of a brilliant idea which was to make candy for children that would mildly shock or disgust their parents. The Gummi Worm however turned out to be less disgusting and more of a popular character of the Gummi series. Nowadays, there are many different Gummi characters aside from the bear and worm. These Gummi candies are available in all shapes and sizes.
As a testament of its popularity, Disney created an adventure cartoon show for children in 1985 that showed a family of Gummi bears and their many fun adventures. It was entitled “The Adventures of the Gummi Bears” and lasted 65 episodes.
A lot of people wonder how they are made when they open a bag of Gummi candies. What most people don’t know is that making these confections is a long process.
It begins with the artists of the manufacturer’s company. These artists make a character sketch which they carve into tiny plaster molds. These molds are then duplicated by a machine. The duplicates are then sent through a starch powder machine where starch powder mold pans are produced. These pans are given to the factory.
In the candy factory, special ingredients like gelatin, sugar and glucose syrup are poured into large boilers which heat them together and are stirred by large paddles constantly. While stirring, the chosen colors and flavorings are added to give the Gummi candy its signature look and taste. After heating, the mix is poured through pipes that transfer them to the production area of the factory.
At the end of the pipes are nozzles that are used to squeeze the mix out into starch boards that contain hundreds of mold duplicates. The candy is allowed to set for three to five days. When settled, beeswax is poured onto the mold to give the candy sheen and make it less sticky. When dry, the Gummi candies are moved through a packaging machine where they will come out ready to be shipped to the different candy stores.
Today, the Gummi Bears, Worms and other candies are popular and well-loved confections enjoyed by the world’s children the whole year round.
Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to Candy
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