Gummy Wonders

In the list of most loved confectioneries in the world, Gummy Bears will undoubtedly secure one of the top positions. Created in the 1920s , the sticky, sweet , plump bear rules our hearts till date.

It all started in a small town called Bonn in Germany where Hans Riegel created the sugary wonder. The decision was not very spontaneous and took quite a few years of hard work to turn his dreams into reality.

Hans Riegel Sr. 1893-1945

Hans started off as a poor confectionary factory worker in Germany when he felt that it was time to do something big. With a bag of sugar, a marble slab, kettle , oven and rolling pin , he started making hard candies which his wife delivered on bicycle. Business was not so brisk , but with average profits , he ended up making a new product - the Gummy Bear. Hans decided to use edible gelatin for it which was gradually gaining popularity . Inspired by bears he enjoyed watching during street festivals , he made candies shaped like bears.

The original base ingredient to make such candies was Gum Arabic , hence , the name Gummy Bear. However, gelatin was widely used as well. Gelatin also worked wonders to provide a long shelf life to confectioneries. Other ingredients like licorice,soft caramel and marshmallow were also used.

Licorice root used in confectionary to give a sweet flavour.

Chocolate Gummy Bear is also widely popular.

Marshmallow bears.

Mass production proccess of making the adorable Gummy Bears is rather unremarkable. A large vat is filled with water, gelatin, corn syrup and food colouring. They are mixed thoroughly and poured into bear shaped moulds lined with cornstarch. The slush is given a day to cool and set.

This simple recipe ensured that Hans's business prospered. At the beginning of World War II, his company which was named HARIBO ( an abbreviation of Hans Riegal Bonn) had about 160 employees . Tragedy struck when Hans died in 1945 and his sons were imprisoned. However, his wife , Gertrud , managed to keep the company going with merely 30 employees. Soon, the great war was over and HARIBO was a world wide sensation. It was managed by Hans Riegel Jr. and the production was looked after by his brother Paul Riegel.

Notice the date mentioned in the package of Haribo Gummy Bears .

Over the years, the skyrocketing popularity of Gummy bears have given it a status of more than just another sweet , it became an emotion. A virtual band Gummibär make songs about Gummy bears which have appealed to the masses. The world's largest Gummy Bear made in 1999 was 5.5 feet tall and was named " Hagi-Boi" showed how much Gummy bears are a part of our lives.

So the next time you casually pop in a Gummy Bear, don't just admire it's taste and appearance, appreciate it's steadfastness which stood the test of time to land up in the shelves of so many homes all over the world.