Mounds (candy) facts for kids
| Type | Coconut candy bar |
|---|---|
| Owner | The Hershey Company |
| Country | U.S. |
| Introduced | 1920 |
| Related brands | Almond Joy |
| Markets | United States |
| Previous owners | Peter Paul Cadbury |
Mounds is a delicious candy bar made by The Hershey Company. It has sweet, shredded coconut inside, covered in rich dark chocolate. It's a popular treat for many people!
Mounds is often compared to its sister candy bar, Almond Joy. While Mounds has dark chocolate and no nuts, Almond Joy has milk chocolate and whole almonds on top of the coconut. You can easily tell them apart by their wrappers: Mounds uses a red design, and Almond Joy uses a blue one.
Contents
How Mounds Candy Started
The Mounds candy bar was first created in 1920 by a candy maker named Vincent Nitido. He lived in West Haven, Connecticut. Back then, it was sold as one piece for just 5 cents.
In 1929, the Peter Paul Candy Manufacturing Company bought the Mounds candy bar. They changed it to have two pieces, but it still cost 5 cents. After World War II, the price went up to 10 cents. For a while, Mounds was even made with milk chocolate!
Mounds During World War II
During World War II, it became very hard for Peter Paul to get enough sugar and coconut. These ingredients usually came from the Philippines. To solve this problem, the company started getting coconut from the Caribbean.
They even used their own small ships to bring the coconut to the United States! These seven ships were nicknamed the "Mounds Flea Fleet." They were small enough to avoid being noticed by enemy ships during the war. This clever idea helped Peter Paul keep making Mounds candy bars. Instead of making less quality candy, they stopped making some of their other brands. This way, they could focus on keeping Mounds delicious.
Over the years, Peter Paul added more popular candies to their lineup. These included the Almond Joy candy bar in 1946 and York Peppermint Patties in 1940.
Ownership Changes and Production
In 1978, the Peter Paul company joined with Cadbury. Later, in 1988, Hershey Foods bought the U.S. part of the company.
For many years, Mounds and Almond Joy were made in Naugatuck, Connecticut. In 1950, Peter Paul built a bigger factory there. Even after Hershey bought the brands, they kept making the candy in Naugatuck until 2007. Then, production moved to a more modern factory in Stuarts Draft, Virginia.
Different Kinds of Mounds
Sometimes, candy companies like to try new flavors! In 2006, a special, limited-edition Mounds candy bar was introduced. It was called Mounds Island Orange. This bar had orange-colored and orange-flavored coconut inside. However, it was only available for a short time.
Mounds Advertising and Slogans
Mounds candy bars have had some famous slogans and advertisements over the years.
"Indescribably Delicious" Slogan
The original slogan for Mounds was "Indescribably Delicious." This catchy phrase was chosen after Mounds held a contest. People were asked to come up with the best two words to describe the candy. A person named Leon Weiss won $10 for his idea! Peter Paul, Inc. officially registered this slogan in 1965. Mounds still uses "Indescribably Delicious" in its ads and on the candy wrapper today.
Famous Jingle and Sister Candy
Mounds and Almond Joy are often advertised together. In the 1970s, they had a very popular jingle that many people remember. The song went: "Sometimes you feel like a nut / sometimes you don't / Almond Joy's got nuts / Mounds don't." This jingle, written by Leon Carr, helped people remember the difference between the two candy bars.
