Candy Corn Was Once Sold Under a Barnyard Name

Candy corn sits in Halloween bowls every October, and it's one of America's most divisive treats. Few people stop to ask where it came from or what it was originally called.

The candy is usually credited to George Renninger, a Philadelphia candymaker, in the 1880s. The Wunderle Candy Company made it first, and Goelitz Confectionery began producing it around 1898. Goelitz is now known as Jelly Belly.

The shape came from a very specific idea. Each kernel was meant to look like a real piece of corn, with a wide yellow top, an orange middle, and a white tip.

Making it was hard work. Workers cooked sugar, fondant, and marshmallow into a slurry, then poured it by hand from buckets into molds, one color at a time. Each batch needed three separate passes.

The late 1800s were a farming era, and agriculture was central to daily American life. Candymakers leaned on that, giving their sweets barnyard themes that felt familiar and wholesome to rural customers.

That's where the name comes in. Goelitz sold its candy corn as "Chicken Feed," in boxes that carried a picture of a rooster and the slogan "Something worth crowing for."

The name faded over time, but the candy stuck around. It eventually became tied to autumn and Halloween, and today the industry says about 35 million pounds are made each year.