Choco pie facts for kids

Choco pie

A choco pie (Hangul: 초코파이) is a popular snack cake. It's made with two small, round pieces of cake. These are filled with soft marshmallow and covered in delicious chocolate. The name "choco pie" first came from America. Now, it's used in South Korea and other places too. It can be a brand name or a general word for this type of treat. Other similar snacks include chocolate marshmallow pies, Wagon Wheels, and moon pies.

How Choco Pies Began

The idea for the choco pie started a long time ago. In 1917, a company called Chattanooga Bakery made a snack called the Moon Pie. This was in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in the southern United States. Moon Pies had graham crackers and marshmallow filling. They were quite similar to today's choco pies.

Later, in 1974, a South Korean snack company called Tongyang R&D started selling its own version. They named it 'Orion Choco Pie'. A person from the company was on a business trip in Georgia, USA. There, they saw a chocolate-covered cake in a hotel restaurant. This gave them the idea to create something similar back in Korea.

After returning home, they worked hard to make their own chocolate cake. They did many experiments to get it just right. Finally, they created the Choco Pie that Koreans know and love today. Because 'Orion Choco Pie' was so successful, Tongyang R&D even changed its name to Orion Confectionery. Other companies, like Lotte Confectionary and Crown Confectionery, also started making their own choco pies.

Where Choco Pies Go

Since the early 2000s, Orion Choco Pies have been sold all over the world. Billions of Choco Pies have been sold globally. A big part of Orion's money comes from sales outside of Korea.

Orion has four main markets where they sell a lot of Choco Pies. These are South Korea, China, Vietnam, and Russia. Choco Pies are also sent to North Korea. Sometimes, they are even given as special bonuses to workers there.

Images for kids

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  This Strawberry Choco Pie was a special limited edition.