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Jolly Ranchers
by Benjamin on Mar.08, 2010, under General
The Jolly Rancher is a brand of candy that includes hard candy, fruit chews, and lollipops. It was originally produced by the Jolly Rancher Candy Company, a Colorado based company which was founded in 1949 by husband and wife Bill and Dorothy Harmsen.
The name Jolly Rancher was derived from idea of western hospitality. When the candy was first introduced, the candy company actually made various products including ice cream and chocolate. Once the Jolly Rancher candy’s popularity was apparent by the growing sales, the company then ceased making ice cream and then concentrated on hard candy.
In 1966, the Harmsens sold the Jolly Rancher Candy to Beatrice Foods but the couple continued to be involved in the day to day operations of the company. Seventeen years later, in 1983, the Finland-based company, Huhtamaki Oy, purchased the candy company and the right to Jolly Rancher Candy from the ailing Beatrice Foods who would later be bought out by Kohlbert Kravis Roberts & Co. in 1986 then later broken up by ConAgra Foods Inc. in 1990.
