Sunday, March 06, 2011

Easter in the U.S.A.

This is the time of year when people start stocking up on Easter candy, thinking that by some miracle they'll be able to resist the sweet siren call of that bag of black jelly beans squirreled away in the closet. Good luck with that. In the meantime, I've been scouting out the aisles, looking for new candy and candy that's made in the U.S.A.-- not as easy to find as you'd think. There's Peep's, everyone's favorite marshmallowy delight, including (apparently) Justin Bieber, who was doused with hundreds of them on Conan recently.Russell Stover eggs are "Proudly Made in the U.S." according to the caramel egg package.
There are Lindt bunnies and ladybugs, some of which are made in Stratham, N.H. (where my wonderful friend formerly known as KrisFromFlorida, now KrisFromNewHampshire, just got a job; BOOYAH!). Pez are made in Connecticut and the store shelves are stocked with bags of little mini Easter Pez. Yes, there is candy out there that is made in the U.S.; you just have to hunt for it.Having said all that, I was pretty surprised to find these on the shelves: Easter Choco' Treasure. These are chocolate eggs that have a plastic capsule inside that contains a toy. As anyone who's ever traveled to Canada or Europe knows, there is a similar product (made in Italy) called Kinder Surprise. These are chocolate eggs (and really yummy chocolate, I might add) that contain a capsule with usually a very clever little toy inside. In January, a woman was stopped at the border between Canada and U.S. and found herself in a bit of hot water because she was found to be carrying in a contraband Kinder Surprise. Yes, the eggs are banned by the FDA because they pose a choking hazard. Hmmm. So how did the Easter Choco' Treasure (made in China) make it onto the shelves?
I've done a little searching, but still have yet to come up with an answer. I'm not the only one. The Surfing Pizza has asked the very same question (although he was brave enough to actually buy a bunch). As one might expect, he wasn't enamored with the chocolate, and was even more disappointed by the toy.

4 comments:

Carol said...

Patti, as always your insightful blog will save me from Easter candy disasters. I however, do not delight in Easter candy. I dislike Peeps, and jellybeans, Cadbury Eggs are too sweet and Russell Stover eggs too costly....so I guess I will just stick with good old chocolate. Now if only I could get some See's candy here in Virginia, I would be a happy mama!!

Candy Yum Yum said...

Carol, I've had really good experiences with shipping from See's. They're not too expensive and, you're right, See's Candy= happy mamas!

jperonto said...

I saw these at my local CVS as well. Confused, but not driven to buy them.

Swedish candy said...

They are very tasty, love them!