Tootsie Roll facts for kids
A small Tootsie Roll "Midgees"
|
|
| Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |
|---|---|
| Energy | 1,619.21 kJ (387.00 kcal) |
|
88 g
|
|
| Sugars | 56 g |
|
3 g
|
|
| Saturated | 1 g |
| Trans | 0 g |
|
Protein
|
2 g
|
| Vitamins | Quantity
%DV†
|
| Vitamin A equiv. |
0%
0 μg |
| Vitamin B6 |
0%
0 mg |
| Vitamin B12 |
0%
0 μg |
| Vitamin C |
0%
0 mg |
| Vitamin E |
0%
0 mg |
| Minerals | Quantity
%DV†
|
| Magnesium |
0%
0 mg |
| Phosphorus |
0%
0 mg |
| Sodium |
3%
44 mg |
| Zinc |
0%
0 mg |
|
Amounts converted and rounded to be relative to 6.6 g serving.
|
|
| †Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults. Source: Nutrifox |
|
Tootsie Roll is a famous chocolate taffy candy. It has been made in the United States since 1907. This candy feels like a mix between a caramel and a taffy, but it's not exactly either one. The company that makes it, Tootsie Roll Industries, is based in Chicago, Illinois. Tootsie Roll was the first "penny candy" in America to be wrapped individually.
Tootsie Roll Industries is one of the biggest candy makers in the world. They make over 65 million Tootsie Rolls every single day! The company says that their original recipe uses a bit of the candy from the day before. This special "graining process" helps keep the Tootsie Rolls tasting the same.
Contents
The Story of Tootsie Roll
How Tootsie Rolls Began
The founder of Tootsie Roll was Leo Hirschfield. He was an immigrant from Austria whose father was also a candy maker. Leo started his own candy business in New York City around 1896. He worked for a company called Stern & Saalberg in Manhattan, New York, for many years.
Leo Hirschfield created his first candy, Bromangelon Jelly Powder. He then invented Tootsie Rolls in 1907. He had a special way of making them that gave them their unique chewy texture. He named the candy after his daughter Clara, whose nickname was "Tootsie." The first Tootsie Rolls were sold in September 1908. Leo Hirschfield became a vice-president at the company. The company later changed its name to Sweets Company of America in 1917. Leo Hirschfield left the company in 1920.
Growing the Tootsie Roll Company
By 1935, the company was having serious problems. Joseph Rubin & Sons, a company that supplied paper boxes to Tootsie Roll, decided to buy the struggling candy company. Bernard D. Rubin took charge and became the president. Under his leadership, Tootsie Roll started selling more candy and making more money. He changed the recipe a bit and made the Tootsie Roll bigger.
Bernard Rubin also moved the company from Manhattan to a much larger factory in Hoboken, New Jersey. He successfully led the company through the difficult war years. During this time, it was hard to get important ingredients. When he passed away in 1948, he had made the company's sales twelve times bigger.
New Leaders for Tootsie Roll
After Bernard Rubin, his brother William B. Rubin became president. He led the company until 1962. Then, William's daughter, Ellen Rubin Gordon, took over. As of August 2025, she is the chairman and CEO of Tootsie Roll Industries. She took over from her late husband, Melvin Gordon, who was chairman and CEO for many years.
Tootsie Roll in Pop Culture
Captain Tootsie Comics
Captain Tootsie was a special comic strip made for Tootsie Rolls. It was created in 1943 by C C Beck, Pete Costanza, and Bill Schreider. The comics featured Captain Tootsie and his young friends: Rollo, Fatso, Fisty (or Marybelle), and Sweetie. These stories were often one-page full-color comics in Sunday newspapers. They also appeared as black and white daily strips.
Captain Tootsie was a strong hero who was quick to act against his enemies. His adventures were fun and safe for kids. The Captain Tootsie comic strip ads stopped appearing in the 1950s.
The Famous Tootsie Roll Song
The Tootsie Roll jingle is called "Whatever It Is I Think I See." It was recorded in New York in 1976. You might still hear parts of this ad during children's TV shows today. It was shown on TV regularly for over 20 years, especially during Saturday morning cartoons.
A nine-year-old girl named Rebecca Jane Weinstein and a 13-year-old boy named David Johnson sang the jingle. They were the children of jazz musicians and friends of the person who wrote the song. David was supposed to sing the solo part, "Whatever it is I think I see becomes a Tootsie Roll to me." But his voice was changing, so Rebecca sang the solo instead. Rebecca still has the original recording of the song.
What's Inside a Tootsie Roll?
The main ingredients in a Tootsie Roll made in the U.S. are: sugar, corn syrup, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, condensed skim milk, cocoa, whey, soy lecithin, and artificial and natural flavors.
In 2009, Tootsie Rolls became certified as kosher by the Orthodox Union. This means they follow special food rules.
Different Tootsie Roll Flavors
Besides the classic chocolate Tootsie Roll, there are many other flavors! These are called Tootsie Fruit Chews. They first came out in the 1970s. You can find flavors like cherry, orange, vanilla, lemon, and lime. Each flavor has its own wrapper color: red, orange, blue, yellow, and green.
There's also a special Mega Mix bag with even more flavors. These include green apple, blue raspberry, and grape. These special Fruit Chews have darker wrappers to match their flavors. For holidays, there's a "Sweet and Sour Holiday Cheer" bag. It has cherry, lime, sour cherry, and sour apple flavors.
Tootsie Frooties come in many different fruit flavors. Some of these are strawberry, blue raspberry, grape, green apple, banana berry, smooth cherry, fruit punch, pink lemonade, root beer, cranberry, blueberry, watermelon, and the newest flavor, mango.
More Sweet Treats
See also
In Spanish: Tootsie Roll para niños
