Candy makers, spooked by cocoa prices, go gummy for Halloween

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This Halloween season, the National Retail Federation expects that we’ll spend $3.5 billion on candy. If you’ve already bought that bag of sweet stuff to hand out to trick-or-treaters, you may have noticed that the selection in the candy aisle looks a little different this year. Due to rising cocoa prices, we’re likely to see less chocolate.

Instead, gummy, chewy and hard candies may reign supreme. “There’re more options than ever because these confectionery companies are trying to diversify since chocolate is so expensive,” says Jaclyn Peiser, a retail reporter at The Washington Post. “So, you’re seeing more flavors, more varieties, more combination packs of candy than we may have seen in the last couple of years.”

Peiser joined “Marketplace” host Kristin Schwab to discuss her piece on this sugary shift. Below is an edited transcript of their conversation.

Kristin Schwab: So when you think of Halloween candy, traditional Halloween candy that you grew up with, what comes to mind for you?

Jaclyn Peiser: Well, I think it depends on the household. You know, some people loaded up on Snickers and Hershey’s and 3 Musketeers, that whole variety pack. Some people did Skittles. My mom would mainly buy Skittles and Starbursts and stuff like that. But I think when we’d fill up our baskets, there was usually a good chunk of chocolate that was in our bag.

Schwab: And so, how are those Halloween treats shifting? What are we going to see more of this year?

Peiser: Yeah. So, I spoke to some analysts who study commodities in the candy and chocolate space. And one really interesting thing they said was that we’re going to see less chocolate this year and probably next year too. There’s a couple of reasons for that. One thing is simply the price of cocoa. The price of cocoa commodities has gone up a lot in the last couple of years. And also, there’s just more interest in gummy, sour and chewy candies. And it’s this interesting cyclical chain of events where prices are higher for chocolate, so consumers are less likely to buy them because they want to grab for something a little bit cheaper when it comes to a little, sweet treat. But then also, there’s more options than ever because these confectionery companies are trying to diversify since chocolate is so expensive. So you’re seeing more flavors, more varieties, more combination packs of candy than we may have seen in the last couple of years.

Schwab: Who’s actually reaching for the gummy worms over chocolate? And what kinds of gummies are we seeing?

Peiser: Mainly it’s Gen Z and millennials who are opting more for the gummy candies. Older generations are still interested in chocolate, but younger generations are also the consumers that are driving sales during this time of year. I mean, a lot of people in this demographic have kids or maybe are handing out candy or are interested in buying candy for their own adult parties. And then a lot of these companies are putting out specialty Halloween-style candies. We’ve already seen that with chocolate. I mean, there are special kinds of Kit Kats that are green and Snickers that have fun decorations on them. But we’re also going to see Twizzlers that are shaped as little ghosts. There’s going to be new kinds of candy corn that are autumn themed, Sour Patch that are of all different flavors of apples. So very, very seasonal candies coming from these gummy folks.

Schwab: What do you do if you’re Hershey’s or a classic chocolate maker and that’s your product, and you have to deal with rising costs and still getting those things on shelves and into people’s hands?

Peiser: The thing is with certain snacky foods, if consumers really like them, they’re still going to buy them. I mean, even if they’re a little bit higher, you’re still going to reach for that if that’s your favorite candy or sweet treat. But also, these companies have made a little bit of an adjustment. So, some analysts that I talked to said that this year or next year, we should expect to see just a little bit of a difference with the chocolate. More chocolate-coated items or more milk chocolate because that requires less cocoa. Candies that have nuts in them will maybe have more than usual, something to kind of fill up the space that requires less cocoa, which then is a lower price for these confectionery companies.

Schwab: Most important question: Are you a chocolate person or a gummy person?

Peiser: I’m a gummy person. So, this is really working in my favor. I think that chocolate is just too sweet. Specifically sour candy is my vice.

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