Candy Corn Production Totals 17,000 Tons Annually

Candy corn’s origins predate its association with Halloween: the treat was invented by George Renninger at the Wunderlee Candy Company and later popularized by Goelitz as “Chicken Feed,” a playful nod to the way corn was commonly viewed at the time. Once sold as an inexpensive penny candy, it became an enduring—and divisive—feature of the Halloween season. More broadly, Halloween traditions often began as small-business ideas that spread into familiar seasonal customs and helped build a major consumer market.