Source: Blog – Alliance for American Manufacturing
I picked up this bag of Made in the USA Albanese gummi bears at my local Target. Photo by Elizabeth Brotherton-Bunch
Need some last minute bags of candy for trick-or-treaters? Don’t get spooked!
Look, I’m not going to lie to you — sometimes it can be difficult to find Made in America items when shopping at the big box stores. Retailers don’t always carry American-made goods, which means there are occasions when you’ve got to do your outside research and be willing to order online.
This, however, is not one of those times.
Halloween 2023 is Tuesday, and I’ve got to say that it is pretty easy to buy Made in the USA when picking out candy for trick-or-treaters. There are many brands, big and small, that make their candy in the United States, and many of them are union-made, too. I even went to my local Target last week and made a whole Instagram reel about the Made in America candy I found.
If you need a little help knowing what to look for, here’s a list of American-made candy, with a caveat: Some of the bigger brands have manufacturing facilities in both the United States and abroad, so just double-check that country of origin label.
Albanese: The Indiana-based brand makes chocolate and nut mixes, but is perhaps best known for its colorful line of gummy bears. That’s what I found when I went shopping at Target (see the above photo).
Almond Joy/Mounds: These two candy bars are closely linked thanks to a clever advertising slogan — sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don’t — but it wasn’t always this way. Mounds were created in 1921 by the Peter Paul Manufacturing Company, which was founded Armenian immigrant Peter Halajian (which he changed to Peter Paul) in Connecticut. Almond Joy came on the scene after World War II when the company added a nut to their famous Mounds bar. Both candy bars are now made in Virginia.
Butterfinger: You tell ’em, Bart Simpson: Don’t lay a finger on my Butterfinger. These crispy peanut butter and chocolate bars turn 100 years old this year and are still Made in the USA at the Ferrero factory in Franklin Park, Ill. That’s also where the company makes Baby Ruth; both were invented by Otto Schnering of the Curtiss Candy Company.
Dum-Dums: These colorful lollypops got their start back in 1924 at the Akron Candy Company in Bellevue, Ohio, allegedly given their name because a corporate executive thought it was easy for kids to say and remember. Spangler Candy bought the brand in 1953 and has been making them ever since. The company says 12 million Dum-Dums are made every day in Bryan, Ohio, which dubs itself the “Lollipop Capital of the World.”
Hershey’s Products: This Pennsylvania mainstay has manufacturing facilities around the world, but many of its products are still made in the Keystone State and at facilities across the country. Hershey’s makes Twizzlers in Lancaster, Pa.; Cadbury, Caramello and Kit Kat® in Hazelton, Pa; Ice Breakers in Nashville, Tenn.; and Heath bars in Robinson, Ill. (at the same plant where the candy bar has been made for a century). Hershey’s chocolate bars and Hershey’s Kisses are made at the company’s factory in Hershey, Pa.
M&Ms: These little colorful chocolates were first made in New Jersey in 1941, and about half of all the M&Ms sold in the United States today still come from the Garden State. M&Ms are also made in Tennessee.
Skittles: These colorful, fruit-flavored candies aren’t an American creation; they were first exported to the United States in the 1970s. But they are now produced at multiple facilities in the United States, including in Yorkville, Ill., and Waco, Texas, the latter of which also produces Starburst and Twix candy.
Tootsie Rolls: Leo Hirschfield invented the Tootsie Roll way back in 1896, naming it after his daughter. It sold for one penny. While the candy was made at various locations throughout its history, production moved to Chicago in 1968, where Tootsie Rolls, Tootsie Roll Pops, and Dots are still made today.
Looking for more candy options? Check out these union-made treats compiled by the AFL-CIO.
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