What does it take to produce millions of marshmallow PEEPs, jelly beans, and chocolate eggs? A lot of chocolate, corn syrup, and decades of manufacturing innovation.
In 2016, Easter candy sales beat out Halloween by a decisive margin of $2.4 billion to $2.1 billion, according to Fortune. So just how do the country's largest confectioners keep up with America's inexhaustibly voracious appetite for Easter candy?
We looked into the manufacturing techniques of some of the most popular sweets** — Marshmallow PEEPS, Jelly Belly Jelly Beans,and Cadbury Creme Eggs — to find out.
**A recent RetailMeNot.com survey suggests that Reese’s Mini Peanut Butter Chocolate Eggs are the most popular, but you can get Reese's anytime, (and they also didn't respond to my interview request).
John Hitch writes about the latest manufacturing trends and emerging technologies, including but not limited to: Robotics, the Industrial Internet of Things, 3D Printing, and Artificial Intelligence. He is a veteran of the United States Navy and former magazine freelancer based in Cleveland, Ohio.