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Eddie Glenn reported for the Tahlequah Daily Press this week that the candy industry will now be producing products with special nutrients designed to enhance the performance of athletes. Following the trend of so many markets already cornered by the diet craze, candy can now be found filled with everything from caffeine to electrolytes to jumpstart the body.

The new candy will be marketed to professional and non-professional athletes with the hopes of everyday people jumping on the bandwagon. BestSweet Inc. has NASCAR champion Dale Earnhardt Jr. agreed to endorse its new XLR8 Energy Chews according to the Daily Press. Similarly, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Schuster’s Blitz Energy Gum will market its product towards drivers on long car rides as well as tired college students trying to pull an all-nighter.

The industry has high hopes for the candy as consumers are already spending about $3 billion a year in similar products (in the form of gels, bars and drinks.). Most new candies are expected to be in stores later this summer.

This posting is courtesy of Katie Schmitt aka “Kandy Katie”

LEXINGTON, Ky. –A woman who won a radio contest that promised the winner “100 grand” sued after the station gave her a candy bar — a Nestle’s 100 Grand — instead of $100,000.

Norreasha Gill filed a complaint Wednesday in Fayette District Court against Atlanta-based Cumulus Media, which owns WLTO-FM in Lexington. Gill, 28, says the station and its parent company breached a contract to pay $100,000 to the contest winner.

Night host DJ Slick sponsored the station’s contest to “win 100 grand,” Gill said in the lawsuit. Gill won by listening to the radio show for several hours and being the 10th caller at a specified time.

She went to the radio station the next morning to pick up her prize, but was asked to return later. When she got home, she found that the station manager had left a message explaining she had won a 100 Grand candy bar, not money.

Later, he offered her $5,000, Gill said.

“I said I wanted $95,000 more,” she said. “Nobody would watch and listen for two hours for a candy bar.”

DJ Slick did not return an e-mail from the Herald-Leader, but he said on his Web site that he had left his job. WLTO and Cumulus declined to comment, identify DJ Slick by his given name or say whether he was fired.

EDITOR’S NOTE: We can save you several hours of listening and you can get a 100 Grand by clicking here

Tampa, Florida – You’re thirsty, you’re watching your weight, your first instinct may be to grab a diet soda.

Mary Sivret, drinks diet soft drinks:
“It definitely keeps my weight down, which I have a problem with that.”

But not so fast. A study eight years in the making by the University of Texas Health Science Center indicates people who drink diet soft drinks may gain weight. The study says there was a 41% increase in risk of being overweight for every can or bottle of diet soft drink a person drinks each day. Registered dietician Cynthia Sass explains why that may be the case for some.

Cynthia Sass, American Dietetic Association:
“Diet sodas do not directly cause you to gain more weight, it’s an indirect cause..but kind of like a chain reaction. It’s that sweet taste that makes you want to have more sweets, makes you eat more, makes you eat more calories than you can burn that leads to weight gain, so there’s nothing in diet drinks themselves that makes you gain weight.”

To give you an idea: a diet soda may contain zero calories, but say you also eat candy every day, i.e. six Jolly Ranchers, that’s an additional 140 calories. For a 150lb woman, it would take at least 35 minutes of walking to burn off those calories. And if you weren’t able to, in a year’s time, you would have gained 14lbs.

Cynthia Sass, American Dietetic Association:
“Some people might think there’s something in that drink that will help them burn calories, but the word ‘diet’ on a beverage doesn’t necessarily mean that there is any substance in that drink that will help you burn calories or melt fat away, or somehow speed up your metabolism, it’s simply not true. So just by drinking diet drinks and still eating as much as you want is not a good weight loss strategy.”

Sass suggests slowly weaning yourself off of diet drinks by drinking brewed unsweetened tea, and of course water.

(Raleigh, NC), June 20, 2005 – The NC/SC National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) is calling on families and other movie fans across North Carolina voice their opposition to a proposed increase in taxes on movie tickets and candy.

Under the proposed 2005 Appropriations Act now under consideration in Raleigh, the tax on movie tickets would increase from one percent to seven percent per ticket.

Other legislation is pending to increase the tax on candy sold in movie theatres. NC/SC NATO is encouraging citizens to contact their state legislators and urge them to vote against the increases.

“Going to the movies is one of the last affordable forms of recreation for many families,” said Casey Brock, president of NC/SC NATO. “This tax will increase the price of the movie-going experience for families, and could put it out of reach financially for some families.”

MODERATOR’S NOTE – Why not bring your own concession candy to the movies . If this tax were to take place, a candy bar could cost $10. Is nothing sacred?

To view our selection of Concession Candy, at reasonable prices, please click here.

Mint Juelps Anyone?

After spending three days at the All Candy Expo, I tried to figure out what new products really piqued my interest. With everything starting to look the same, I stumbled upon a marvelous new candy from New England Confectionary Company (known to candy intimates as NECCO).

The candy is called Mint Juleps and although a new release, it has a marvelous retro feel.

Perfect for Kentucky Derby parties or anytime you want a unique, mint flavored candy, this product is a winner and stands out as unique in a candy world plauged by sameness…

To order a cool Mint Julep sans silver cup, please click here.

OHIO CITY OFFICIALS FIGHT OVER CANDY PURCHASE

ELYRIA , OHIO
8 June 2005

There’s a fight brewing in Lorain County over $47.79 worth of candy purchased at for a local parade

The county administrator is seeking to get reimbursed for the eight bags of Tootsie Rolls, Dum Dum Pops and other treats he bought for commissioners to toss out during parades.

But the county auditor says he’s not going to use tax money to reimburse anyone for candy.

An assistant county prosecutor will decide the matter.

A complete Pez Batman display box including the 24 mint and sealed Batman with cape Pez Dispensers sold recently for $6,300. Also included was the original shipping lid which featured a Batman label and 24 Pez advertising booklets.

Pez originated in Austria in 1927. In 1952 Pez entered the United States and was marketed towards children with a figural head on the candy dispenser. Over the years Pez has featured many classic characters including Donald Duck, Spider-Man, Frankenstein, the rare Make-A-Face Pez and many others.

Although our recent delivery of Batman Pez Dispensers does not include the originals, they are a collectible and have been released to coincide with the latest Batman movie.

To see the new Pez Batman Dispenser, please click here

We just got our latest shipment of Goo Goo Clusters and the discussion arose as to where this candy got it’s name.

We went to Standard Candy’s website and this is the story…

According to the manufacturer:

Mr. Howell Campbell ( the inventor of GooGoo Clusters) used to ride a streetcar to work.
Soon after he developed his delicious new confection, word spread quickly about this uniquely round shaped treat. People didn’t know how to ask for or what to call it.

Mr.Campbell was extremely excited that his newest concoction was the talk of the town but even he himself was baffled as to what to call his newest creation.

One day Mr.Campbell was announcing to fellow passengers on the streetcar his newborn son’s first words and a schoolteacher made the connection wit the candy. She suggested he name his treat, GooGoo. It is so good that people will ask for it from birth!

To take a look at the Original Goo Goo Cluster ( it actually comes in three varities), please click here

CANDY COMPANY HAS DARK MOTIVE

Blake Gillespie
Staff Writer – ATHEN NEWS (OHIO UNIVERSITY)

Over the course of the quarter, I have made it my duty as an objective journalist to illuminate the counterculture of college, so to speak. I’ve made some claims and attempted to make some changes, all for a greater purpose.

Let it be known: Blake Gillespie is a rebel writer with a cause. Much like Tupac Shakur used gangster rap music to get the attention of blacks, I have used this column to get college students’ attention. I can only be optimistic of my hopes for the revolution to be completed before the government assassinates me for knowing too much or for gaining too much influence.

This conspiracy might sound like schizophrenic paranoia, but for approximately 50 years, PEZ Candy Inc. has been brainwashing children to kill. PEZ is the candy company that distributes its treats by way of little plastic dispensers. The candy is thrust from the necks of different cartoon characters. At first glance these dispensers probably seem innocent, but when viewed under a critical lens, the results are alarming.

Have you ever considered the possibility that PEZ might have an ulterior motive? Children are being programmed to commit the violent act of beheading a cartoon character to receive a prize -candy. This is just a small step away from joining a radical militia to kill for your government or -even worse -a higher being.

The violence in children is not from television, video games or music -as the adults behind this conspiracy want us to think -but from PEZ.

Do you know where the word PEZ derived from? According to the PEZ Web site, http://pezco.securesites.com, it is from the German word “pfefferminz,” which means “peppermint.” I seem to remember a time when Germany was brainwashing its citizens -need I say more? Further Web site browsing revealed more clues to this conspiracy and plan of global savagery, such as this tidbit from the PEZ history section: “New character dispensers are introduced regularly to capitalize on current trends.” The sentence translates to the PEZ company’s ability to adapt to pop culture in order to program each generation. In the 1950s it was Mickey Mouse, and most recently it has followed the trend of Marvel Mania by giving children the opportunity to execute Spiderman.

PEZ is not just a homeland problem. These volatile candies are being distributed in more than 60 countries. Lately, medieval-style beheadings have frequented the world news. I say all fingers point to PEZ.

The revolution against PEZ can start with you. Do not let these delicious candies appeal to your stomachs as well as to the savage animal within. If you feel the urge to protest, the company’s headquarters are in Orange, Conn. But perhaps I have said too much. The information is in your hands now -do with it what you please.

BLOG MEDIATOR’S NOTE – OK, I ADMIT TO FALLING PREY TO CONSPIRACY THEORIES AND AS TO THE ACCURACY OF THIS ENTRY, IT IS UP TO THE READER TO JUDGE

HOWEVER, AS CREATIVE WRITING GOES, THIS IS A WILD ARTICLE AND IT DID COME FROM OHIO UNIVERSITY WHICH IS MY OLD “STOMPING” GROUNDS..

IAFRICA.COM – HEALTH & FITNESS SECTION
1 JUNE 2005

NO MORE KING SIZE CANDY BARS?

King-size candy bars which have helped fuel Britain’s expanding appetite and waistline will be phased out by some food companies in compliance with an official campaign against obesity, media reported on Monday.

Cadbury Schweppes, the conglomerate which produces the famed British Cadbury chocolates, and Mars, the Masterfoods subsidiary and maker of sugary snacks M&Ms, Milky Way and Twix, said some of their extra-hefty sweet confections would disappear from next year.

The country’s Food and Drink Federation, which also includes major multinational companies like Coca-Cola, Nestle and Unilever, Monday published a food “manifesto” in which its members vowed to “explore new approaches for individual portion sizes to help reduce over-consumption”.

The move is seen as an industry-wide bid to impose some self-regulation rather than face stringent state rules aimed at curtailing Britain’s health crisis.

Politicians and health specialists believe obesity has reached crisis levels here, with children “choking on their own fat”, according to an expert quoted in an alarming official report in May.

Britain has the world’s fastest-growing fat problem, with childhood obesity tripling in two decades and fully three-quarters of adults now overweight or obese.

Cadbury said on Sunday its king-size Crunchie and Boost bars would be put out of production from the end of February, while Masterfoods said it was phasing out its 100g Mars and 85g Snickers, according to the Daily Telegraph.

But the Mars and Snickers bars will be replaced by something equally large — a two-portion sweet which will be sold as a snack to share.

“The name king-size will be phased out”, Masterfoods’ Michael Jenkins told the newspaper, explaining that the large portions “will be changed so they are shareable or can be consumed on more than one occasion”.

Nestle, the Swiss food giant, has rejected calls to shelve its giant-size versions of Lion bars, Kit Kats and Rolos.

The products, packed with fat, refined sugars and calories are mostly consumed by “young men with active lifestyles”, a company spokesman said.

Consumer advocates dismissed the candy makers’ moves as superficial and intended only to deflect criticism, not change Britons’ junk food habits