A Peep From The Past

by Laurnie Wilson

Everyone loves a Marshmallow Peep, especially around Easter. No Easter Basket is really complete without it. They’re perfectly soft, sugary, and fun to eat, and they have been for over 60 years!

These little guys are a great example of a simple treat becoming hugely successful! After all, they’re only made of sugar, corn syrup, gelatin, and food dyes. Yet, the popularity has always been through the roof!

Candy Man

If there’s one man responsible for bringing us the Peep as we know and love it, that man would be Sam Born, founder of Just Born Candy Company. He set up shop in Brooklyn, New York all the way back in 1910, operating his candy making and retail store, where he made his candies fresh daily, until 1932. In that year he made the economically sound choice to relocate to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

But don’t think that this move made him any less successful. On the contrary, Born was able to acquire a number of candy companies after his relocation to Pennsylvania. One such company was Rodda Candy Company, which just happened to have a popular marshmallow Easter Peep line. Can you see where we’re going with this?

Peep Innovation

In 1953, when Born acquired Rodda, their Peeps were made by hand,squeezed through pastry tubes. Can you imagine? It’s no wonder it took 27 hours to make a single Peep back then! But, thanks to Born’s son, Bob, Just Born mechanized the Peep making process, saving time and countless cramped hands with much welcomed technology! From then on, Peeps were made in yellow, pink, and white. New shapes were also introduced in the 60’s, as Peeps expanded to be relevant for more than just the Easter holiday season.

Then in 1995, lavender and blue Peeps were added, bringing more color to the pantheon of Peeps products. And between 1999 and 2002, vanilla, strawberry, and chocolate flavors were introduced. I guess you could say Peeps really started taking the world by storm! Today, you can find Peeps for practically every occasion, either in their sugary form, or dipped in chocolate. Clearly, there are no limits to what Peeps can become, and no holiday they can’t conquer.

Now that you've had fun learning about the fascinating history of the Marshmallow Peep, visit our Peep product page where you can choose from a vast variety of Peeps to order for yourself and others.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peeps
https://www.justborn.com/get-to-know-us/our-history

Images Sources:

https://www.aroundmyfamilytable.com/2014/03/peep-ideas-for-easter/
https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/product-reviews/research-institute/history-marshmallow-candy-peeps