Here’s more from CandyIndustry.com:

Starting Tuesday, one million people will have a chance to get a free bag of of Lindor Truffles.

Lindt & Sprϋngli USA, which produces the Lindor chocolates, is giving away 6-oz. bags of the candy via a coupon consumers can get by visiting the Lindt Facebook page. It will be redeemable at retailers nationwide and at Lindt Chocolate Shops.

The giveaway is an effort to emphasize Lindt’s new brand positioning as “Chocolate Beyond Compare,” the company says.

The special offer is redeemable for nine different flavors, including: Classic Milk Chocolate, Dark Chocolate, White Chocolate, Vanilla, Peanut Butter and Stracciatella, among others. The promotion will run while supplies last.
Crafted by the Lindt Master Chocolatiers using a beloved recipe and the finest ingredients for more than 60 years, Lindor truffles feature a smooth filling enrobed in a Lindt chocolate shell.

If you miss your opportunity to get a free bag of Lindor Truffles, don’t worry – you can buy some from our website at this link.

Photo Credit: Photo is from Lindt Chocolate’s Facebook page

According to the Almond Board of California, consumers are most likely to be introduced to almonds through confectioners!  Hurrah for us, because we get to help people enjoy one of the yummiest and healthiest snacks around.  Almonds have some major health benefits that make it a worthwhile snacking option.  Here are just a few of those benefits:

• Good for brain: Almond is a source of many nutrients which help in development of the brain.
• Regulates cholesterol: Regular consumption of almonds helps to increase the level of high density lipoproteins (HDL) and reduce the level of low density lipoproteins (LDL), thereby effectively controlling cholesterol levels.
• Good for heart: Mono-saturated fat, protein and potassium contained in almonds are good for the heart. Vitamin E acts as an antioxidant and reduces the risk of heart diseases. The presence of magnesium in almonds helps to avoid heart attacks.
• Regulates blood pressure: Potassium present in almond helps to regulates blood pressure. Almonds are very low in sodium which also helps in containing blood pressure.
• Prevention of cancer: Almond improves the movement of food through the colon, thereby preventing colon cancer.
• Protection against diabetes: Almonds also help in reducing the rise in sugar and insulin levels after meals. This offers protection from diabetes.
• Good in pregnancy: Almond contains folic acid. Folic acid helps to reduce the incidence of birth defects in newborn babies.
• Prevention of constipation: Almonds are rich in fibre. Like most other fibre rich food, almonds also help in preventing constipation.
• Boosts energy: The presence of manganese, copper and Riboflavin helps in energy production.

Here are photos of the five most expensive.  To see the full list with all the details, click here to TopTens.net.

#5 – Fortress Stilt Fisherman Indulgence – $14,500

#4 – Frozen Haute Chocolate – $25,000

#3 – Platinum Cake – $130,000

#2 – Strawberries Arnauld – $1.4 million

#1 – Diamond Fruitcake – $1.65 million

All photos are from TopTenz.net

An Alexander McQueen inspired gown has been created from 50,000 colorful gummy bears!  How amazing is this?  The dress was handmade for TWELV Magazine’s debut issue and weighs a hefty 220 pounds. It takes three super strong people just to move it, so we probably won’t see anyone dancing in it any time soon.

How exactly is a gummy bear dress made? First, steel wire is twisted to create the shape of the dress, then the mold is covered with a sheet of vinyl, and finally each gummy bear is painstakingly glued on in a chevron rainbow pattern. No surprise it took three weeks to finish this elaborate gown.

Above is a photo of the gummy bear dress (left) next to the McQueen inspiration.  What do you think?

Article details and photographs are from Shine.Yahoo.com

Salt Cellar and Spoon (0r candy dish, depending on how you want to use the bowl) from Jeanette Zeis Ceramics on Etsy.  

Pretty much everything on Jeanette Zeis’ Etsy page is amazing.  You MUST check out the personalized cake and cupcake stands, hanging fruit baskets and my favorite – the salt cellar, which to me look like  a perfect candy dish with a scooper.  What do you think?

Wall Stickers from Blik

So, we just moved into a new apartment and the walls are a super bright white that we’re not allowed to paint.  I’m totally going tog get some of these amazing wall stickers to spruce it up.  These cafe lights would look awesome in my kitchen.

Cubist Martini Set from RedEnvelope.com

Whether you down your drink in dramatic fashion or nurse it for an hour, your martini can forever remain chilled in these awesome Cubist Martini glasses.  These are also great for serving chilled desserts, or special treats.

Jo Totes Camera Bags

Do you love to take your camera places but HATE the ugly, utilitarian, black canvas camera bag that you’re forced to lug around to protect your precious lens?  Well, you now have a really awesome solution – a Jo Tote!  Check out these gorgeous and fashionable camera tote bags that are artfully disguised as really cool purses.  This Rose – Teal tote is my personal favorite.

B. Nute Vintage Style Party Invitations and Decor

Vintage decor, especially for parties, never goes out of style.  That’s why I love these invitations and party decorations from B. Nute.  They’re charming, whimsical and have an authentic touch of vintage artistry to be perfect for so many occasions.

We’ve got 10 amazing boards and tons more on the way so you can pin your favorite candy, dessert table and party inspiration photos to your heart’s contest.

Here’s a sampling of some of our boards.  To see them all, click here!

In addition to having our own custom boards, we’ve also added these nifty “Pin it!” buttons to all of our blog posts, so you can pin any photo you see on our blog or store website to your boards lickety-split.  Have fun pinning!

Check this out – coming this winter, Jelly Belly will be selling bags of white jelly beans with a big red question mark on them and they want YOU to guess what the new mystery flavor is!  The competition will run through Easter 2013.  Here’s what you could win:

After registering on Jelly Belly’s Facebook page, consumers interested in winning the $10,000 can enter a code found in the Jelly Belly mystery flavor package and choose from a list of possible flavors. The winner, to be announced in August 2013, will be selected randomly from participants who guessed correctly.

Sounds awesome, right?  I can’t wait to get my mystery flavor bag and start guessing!

Here are some more details from an article on CandyIndustry.com.

Jelly Belly Candy Company will launch the “Jelly Belly Mystery Flavor Sweepstakes,” a 7-month promotion that allows consumers to guess the flavor of a new bean through Facebook and possibly win $10,000 among other prizes.

Rob Swaigen, vice president of marketing, says this promotion — which will occur during the 2013 Easter season — will build off one the Fairfield, Calif.-based confectioner did in 2006.

“It was by far our most successful promotion ever,” Swaigen says.”We kind of looked at that, and decided it was time to bring it back with a unique twist. It generated a ton of incremental sales for us. We saw great participation, and a significant increase in sales and sales velocity at the shelf, which is what we always look for.”

Specially marked packages containing white beans with red question marks will ship to stores in December. Additionally, the company will also offer retailers three pre-packed floor displays to help promote the contest.

Swaigen says that in addition to increasing sales and consumer engagement, the promotion will create a strong fanbase for a new flavor should Jelly Belly decide to officially release it.

“We are able to build awareness for this mystery flavor,” Swaigen says. “It gives us the opportunity if we choose to launch that flavor later to bring it out with an open audience. There will already be a solid fanbase for it.”

After registering on Jelly Belly’s Facebook page, consumers interested in winning the $10,000 can enter a code found in the Jelly Belly mystery flavor package and choose from a list of possible flavors. The winner, to be announced in August 2013, will be selected randomly from participants who guessed correctly.

Otherwise, participants can play a game similar to Plinko from “The Price is Right” on Jelly Belly’s Facebook page and win Jelly Belly merchandise.

And while online interaction is a main component of the contest, Swaigen says flavor is key.

“We already knew consumers were very responsive to flavors,” Swaigen says. “The idea of not letting people know what it was, and this sort of ‘intriguing’ white bean with a red question mark we thought would be very compelling. We were right. I think people were very attracted to this idea of, ‘even if I don’t win $10,000, I know when I buy that bag, I’m going to get something new and different.’ Leveraging one of our core competencies, which is flavors, and building a fun promotion around it made a lot of sense.”

Quoted article is written by Alyse Thompson from CandyIndustry.com

How awesome is Mars Chocolate, am I right?  Take a look at this article below about the company being on track to becoming the largest user of certified cocoa in the world.  The company has promised to purchase 100% of it’s cocoa from certified sustainable growers by 2020 and they are currently at 20%.  Purchasing certified sustainable cocoa helps cocoa farmers from around the world by raising their income (many are from poor and impoverished countries), professionalizing their farm management, improving the education of their families and workers, and protecting the environment. Kudos to Mars for making a difference!

Here is the article from CandyIndustry.com going into more details:

At the rate Mars is going, certified sustainable cocoa may very well become a given.

Mars Chocolate is on track to becoming the largest user of certified cocoa in the world, as part of the company’s 2009 promise to purchase its entire cocoa supply from certified sustainable sources by 2020.

Mars projects it will exceed its original target of purchasing 20% of its total cocoa supply as certified sustainable in 2012, and will buy nearly 90,000 tons of certified cocoa — making it the largest user of certified cocoa in the world.

The company met last year’s goal of purchasing 10% as part of its Sustainable Cocoa Initiative, an effort to increase sustainability, productivity and cocoa farmer incomes.

“We are pleased to have reached another critical milestone in our Sustainable Cocoa Initiative,” says Barry Parkin, global procurement and sustainability head at Mars. “A successful certification program is so important to our effort because it is the most effective tool we currently have to reach millions of cocoa farmers at scale.”

Mars Chocolate currently works with three leading certification organizations: the Rainforest Alliance, Fairtrade International, and UTZ Certified.

“Certification has great potential to benefit hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of cocoa farmers,” says Andy Harner, v.p. of global cocoa at Mars. “However, to be truly meaningful, certification must bring industry together to prioritize real change at the farm level ahead of all other interests.”

What’s your favorite Mars brand chocolate bar?  Leave a comment below and let us know!

Those flavorful, adorable little suckers we all know as Dum Dums are about to get a “smarter” look.  For the first time in 10 years, the Dum Dums packaging and logo will be updated.  From Candy Industry Magazine, here is more about the new look of Dum Dums!

For the first time in more than a decade, Dum Dums will sport a “smarter” look.

Spangler Candy Co. is introducing a new, more modern packaging design and logo for the lollipop product line, which is scheduled to debut in mid-2012.

The new logo has a brighter and bolder appearance on the pack, and the word “Pops” was removed from the logo and placed in the package’s descriptor roll.

The new packaging also includes front-of-pack nutrition and allergen-free labeling, as well as a list of usage occasions on the back of the pack.

Although the company is launching a modern look for their Dum Dums product, they also note the importance of not straying too far from the brand’s heritage.

“It is important to stay current with our graphics but retain the Dum Dums look,” says Jim Knight, vice president of marketing at the Spangler Candy Co.

Spangler Candy Co. brought in Fisher Design, a Cincinnati-based brand design agency to work alongside their marketing department to develop the new Dum Dums packaging. The multi-phase process incorporated input from sales, production, and quality assurance.

The Spangler Candy Co. has been in business since 1906 and their line of products includes Dum Dums, Saf-T-Pops, Circus Peanuts and Marshmallow Treats, Spangler Candy Canes, and Valentine, Easter, Halloween, and Christmas Candies.

Photo Credits: Photo is from CandyIndustry.com