Baby Ruth facts for kids
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| Type | Confectionery |
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| Owner | Ferrara Candy Company Nestlé |
| Country | United States |
| Introduced | 1921 |
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The Baby Ruth is a popular American candy bar. It is made with peanuts, caramel, and a milk chocolate-flavored nougat. All of this is covered in a chocolate coating. This candy bar was first made in 1920. It is named after Ruth Cleveland, who was the daughter of a U.S. president. Today, the Ferrara Candy Company distributes Baby Ruth bars. This company is part of Ferrero.
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What is the History of Baby Ruth?
In 1920, the Curtiss Candy Company changed its "Kandy Kake" bar. They renamed it the Baby Ruth. By the late 1920s, it became the most popular five-cent candy bar. The Curtiss company, based in Chicago, made this bar for over 60 years.
Later, in 1981, Nabisco bought the Curtiss company. Then, in 1990, RJR Nabisco sold the Curtiss brands to Nestlé. In 2018, Ferrero bought Nestlé USA's candy brands, including Baby Ruth. Ferrero then moved the production of these candies to its Ferrara Candy Company.
Ferrara launched a new version of Baby Ruth in December 2019. The new recipe uses dry-roasted peanuts from the United States. Older versions used oil-roasted peanuts. The company also removed a food preservative called TBHQ.
Why is it Called Baby Ruth?
The name of the candy bar sounds a lot like the famous baseball player Babe Ruth. However, the Curtiss Candy Company always said it was named after President Grover Cleveland's daughter, Ruth Cleveland. The company was located near Wrigley Field in Chicago. They named the bar "Baby Ruth" in 1921. This was when Babe Ruth was becoming very famous. It was also 24 years after President Cleveland left the White House. His daughter, Ruth, had passed away 17 years earlier.
The company did not make a deal with Babe Ruth to use his name. Many people thought the company's story was a way to avoid paying the baseball player any money. In a legal case, Curtiss successfully stopped a rival candy bar. That bar was approved by and named for Babe Ruth. Curtiss argued that the names were too similar.
Some people believe the candy bar was named after the granddaughter of the candy makers. These makers, Mr. and Mrs. George Williamson, sold their recipe to Curtiss. However, the official story from the company remained that it was named after Ruth Cleveland.
How Was Baby Ruth Advertised?
To help sell the candy, company founder Otto Schnering did something amazing in 1923. He used a plane to drop thousands of Baby Ruth bars over Pittsburgh. Each bar had its own tiny parachute! Schnering later did these parachute drops in many cities across over 40 states.
In 1929, the Curtiss Candy Company sponsored a CBS Radio show. It was called The Baby Ruth Hour.
After Babe Ruth hit a famous home run at Chicago's Wrigley Field in the 1932 World Series, Curtiss put up a huge sign. It was an illuminated Baby Ruth ad on a building roof near where the ball landed. This sign stayed there for about 40 years.
In 1985, Nabisco paid $100,000 for Baby Ruth to appear in the movie The Goonies.
The company also sponsored NASCAR race cars. In 1992, they sponsored Jeff Gordon's car. The next year, they sponsored Jeff Burton's car.
In 1995, a company representing Babe Ruth's family allowed his name and image to be used. This was for a Baby Ruth advertising campaign.
Baby Ruth has also been called "The official candy bar of major league baseball." They have sponsored the Chicago Cubs. During the 2007 baseball season, a TV ad showed a stadium full of people eating Baby Ruths. Because their mouths were full, they had to hum instead of singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch.
What are Baby Ruth Ingredients?
The main ingredients in a Baby Ruth bar are sugar, roasted peanuts, and corn syrup. It also contains palm kernel and coconut oil, nonfat milk, and cocoa. Other ingredients include high-fructose corn syrup, glycerin, dextrose, salt, egg, and soy lecithin. Natural and artificial flavors, carrageenan, and caramel color are also used.
Ferrero's current recipe uses these main ingredients: Sugar, Dry Roasted Peanuts, Corn Syrup, and Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (Palm Kernel, Coconut, and Soybean). It also has Nonfat Milk, Cocoa, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Dairy Product Solids, Glycerin, Dextrose, Salt, Soy Lecithin, Lactic Acid Esters, and Carrageenan.
What Sizes Does Baby Ruth Come In?
Besides the regular 1.9 ounce (53.8-gram) bar, Baby Ruth also comes in other sizes. You can find a larger 3.7-ounce (King Size) bar. There is also a 3.3-ounce (93.5 g) Share Pack, which has two pieces. Smaller "Fun Size" and "Miniatures" are also available.
Are There Other Baby Ruth Products?
Nestlé makes a Baby Ruth ice cream bar. It has a milk chocolate coating, chocolate-covered peanuts, and a vanilla-and-nougat flavored ice cream center. Nestlé also makes "Baby Ruth Crisp" bars. These are chocolate-covered wafer cookies with caramel-flavored cream and crushed peanuts.
See also
