Tuesday, September 15, 2009

The future of candy

Posted by Jonathan Bender on Tue, Sep 15, 2009 at 11:30 AM

dots.candy.091509.jpg

You never think that big things are going on in the candy aisle in terms of innovation. We still eat Sky Bars and Valomilks, after all.

But then you stumble on something like Halloween Dots and it makes you wonder if the candy world isn't in some sort of upheaval. With flavors like Blood Orange and Candy Corn, and neon green versions of the movie theater stalwart, a paradigm shift is probably needed. It's like the ending of Rocky IV. If dots can change, than anything can change. 

Fruit-flavored Dots were introduced in 1945. The candy, made by Tootsie, was fairly staid until 2003 saw the release of tropical dots. Yogurt flavors came on the scene four years later -- two-toned, two-flavor dots that are likely gobbled down by the same folks who approve of yogurt-covered pretzels. And this year, we have the Halloween-themed gum drop-like candies.

So hold on to your hats; the candy aisle will be getting a little freaky. If you're wondering which direction we're headed, The Tomorrow Show on CBS has offered up a few possibilities. The candy episode looks at the rise of sour candies amid the disturbing fact that the average American consumes 24.5 pounds of candy per year.

Beyond unconventional flavors, host Mo Rocca has guest Frank Bruni, The New York Times' restaurant critic until a month ago, try a chocolate inhaler. 

"It sounds scarily medical," says Bruni before lifting the cannister to

his lips. After a motion resembling the inhale on a joint, he says

simply, "Chocolate air," before continuing:

"This

is so not doing it for me. The thing about eating is, you know, you want

to kind of feel the food in your mouth. Whether it's solid food you're

chewing on, whether it's a milkshake and there is that slushy rush of

temperature, you know when it's reduced to air like this, I think your

satisfaction is bound to be less."

Hopefully that means we won't be seeing inhalable Dots on the market.  

[Image via Flickr: riri trautmann]

Tags: , , ,

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this thread:

Add a comment

Slideshows

All contents ©2012 Kansas City Pitch LLC
All rights reserved. No part of this service may be reproduced in any form without the express written permission of Kansas City Pitch LLC,
except that an individual may download and/or forward articles via email to a reasonable number of recipients for personal, non-commercial purposes.
Website powered by Foundation