Nerds (candy) facts for kids
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| Owner | Ferrara Candy Company |
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| Introduced | 1983 |
| Previous owners | Nestlé |
Nerds are a popular American candy that first came out in 1983. They were originally created by the Sunmark Corporation under the Willy Wonka Candy Company name. Today, Nerds are made by the Ferrara Candy Company, which is part of the Ferrero Group.
Nerds candy boxes are special because they usually have two different flavors inside. Each flavor has its own separate section and opening. This means you can pour out one flavor at a time, or mix them! The boxes often have fun, cartoon-like characters on them.
Contents
How Nerds Candy Is Made
Have you ever wondered how tiny Nerds candies get their unique shape and crunch? It's a cool process! A TV show called Unwrapped once explained it.
Starting with Sugar Crystals
The journey of a Nerd candy begins with a tiny sugar crystal. Think of it as the very center, or "nucleus," of each candy. Factory workers add more and more sugar layers onto these crystals.
Coating and Coloring
Huge, spinning barrel-like machines are used to tumble the sugar crystals. As they spin, more sugar is added, slowly building up the candy until it forms the familiar Nerd shape. When they are first made, Nerds are pure white. They get their bright colors in separate barrels. For example, the popular grape and strawberry Nerds are colored in different barrels before being put together in the same box.
The Crunchy Coating
Each Nerd candy is covered with a special glaze. This glaze helps give them their hard, crunchy bite and a shiny look.
What's Inside Nerds?
Nerds candies are mostly made of sugar. The main ingredients are dextrose, sugar, and malic acid. Malic acid is what gives Nerds their tangy or sour taste.
Other Ingredients
Besides sugar, Nerds also contain small amounts of corn syrup, artificial flavors, and artificial coloring. The colors used depend on the flavor of the candy. It's good to know that Nerds are made in a factory that also handles wheat and egg products.
Serving Size Info
A typical serving of Nerds is about one tablespoon, which is around 15 grams. This amount has about 60 calories. Most of these calories come from carbohydrates, with very little fat or protein. Larger boxes of Nerds can weigh about 141.7 grams.
Nerds and Their Candy Friends
When Nerds first came out in the 1980s, they were very popular. But they had some big competitors! Other well-known candies at the time included Pop Rocks, Candy Buttons, and Mike and Ike.
Meet Dweebs
Nerds even had a "cousin" candy called Dweebs. Dweebs were quite similar to Nerds but had a few differences. They were a bit less sour and larger in size. One of the biggest differences was that Dweebs usually had three flavors in one box, instead of the two that Nerds typically offered. Dweebs were described as being softer and having more "depth" than Nerds. However, Dweebs were only sold for a short time.
Different Kinds of Nerds
Nerds come in many different flavors and colors. Some are super sweet, while others are very sour. Often, the two flavors in a box will be opposites, like sweet and sour!
Popular Flavors
Here are some of the common flavors you might find:
- Strawberry and Grape (pink and purple)
- Wild Cherry and Watermelon (orange or red and green)
- Double Dipped Lemonade-Wild Cherry and Apple-Watermelon (red and yellow)
- Sour-Lightning Lemon and Amped Apple (yellow and light green)
- Surf 'n Turf- Totally Tropical Punch and Road Rash Raspberry (red and blue)
- Wildberry and Peach (blue and orange)
- Watermelon and Punch and Wildberry (green and blue)
- Mango Chile and Guava (yellow and pink)
Special Nerds Products
The Willy Wonka company has also created many fun spin-off products based on Nerds:
- Sour Nerds are bigger and extra sour. They often come in flavors like Lightning Lemon and Amped Apple.
- Giant Chewy Nerds have a soft, chewy center like a jelly bean, surrounded by a crunchy Nerd shell.
- Nerds Rope is a gummy string covered with lots of different Nerds candies. It comes in original, berry, and tropical flavors.
- Rainbow Nerds are a mix of many different flavors of regular Nerds all in one box, without any dividers.
- Jumbo Nerds are much larger than regular Nerds.
- Nerds Gum Balls are bubble gum balls that have Nerds candies inside them.
- Seasonal Nerds are made for holidays. For example:
- Spooky Nerds for Halloween (fruit punch and orange flavors).
- Frosty Nerds for Christmas (watermelon, cherry, and fruit punch flavors).
- Valentine Nerds for Valentine's Day (strawberry and fruit punch flavors).
- Hoppin' Nerds for Easter (pink and blue rainbow flavors).
- Nerds Cereal was a breakfast cereal that came out in the 1980s. Just like the candy, it had two different flavors in one box. This cereal is no longer made.
- Nerds Gum were pieces of bubble gum that looked like regular Nerds.
- Neon Nerds were introduced in 1996 with bright flavors like Pinktricity, LightningLime, and Electro Orange. They are still sold in Australia and New Zealand.
- Nerd Jelly Beans are jelly beans with a Nerd-like coating, made for Easter.
- Nerd Blizzard was a milkshake offered at Dairy Queen that mixed Nerds with soft-serve ice cream. It's mostly discontinued now.
- Candy Nerds Slushes are a type of slushie drink offered by Sonic that includes Nerds.
Throughout the 1980s, new flavors were often added, such as "Hot and Cool" Nerds (cinnamon and wintergreen) and blueberry and raspberry.
Fun Facts About Nerds
Some people believe that the name "Nerds" came from a Dr. Seuss book called If I Ran the Zoo. In the book, a "nerd" is mentioned as one of the creatures the narrator would want for his zoo.
Did you know that some Nerds products have only been sold in certain countries? For example, in the United Kingdom, a product called Nerdalicious was released in 2005. It was like licorice filled with Nerds!
See also
In Spanish: Nerds (dulce) para niños
