Take 5
Hershey Foods
(717) 534-6799
Hershey bills its newest entry into the candy bar
category as “five layers of wow.” Available now, the bar
is a combination of sweet and salty, crunchy and chewy. Packaged as a
two-piece bar, Take 5 has two pretzel pieces topped with peanut butter, a
layer of creamy caramel, then crunchy, roasted peanuts—all covered in
Hershey’s milk chocolate. The suggested retail price is 69 cents to
79 cents.
Take 5 is available in counter units and shippers and
display-ready cases. Hershey is supporting the Take 5 rollout with in-store
sampling and national television advertising that will debut early next
year. The fully integrated marketing campaign also includes sponsorship of
a NASCAR Busch Series Hershey’s Take Five racecar.
Hershey’s Cookies
Hershey Foods
(717) 534-6799
New from Hershey’s Snack Division are
Hershey’s Cookies available in Reese’s, York, Hershey’s
with Almonds, and Almond Joy varieties. Each combines a crunchy chocolate
cookie with creamy candy centers, all covered with Hershey’s
chocolate. An added bonus is the fact that the cookies are formulated to
contain no trans fats. They come packaged four cookies per single-serve
bag.
Wild-X Breathfusion
PISSA
(210) 546-2126
This new sugar-free breath freshener features tiny
mint capsules, each with an even more tiny lemon flavor sphere inside.
According to the company, contact with the mouth causes the flavors to
release separately, creating a unique flavor sensation. The pocket-size
plastic dispenser contains 24 drops and slides open to release one at a
time. Twelve- and 24-pack displays are available.
Chile + Lime Gum
Chargers Candy
(858) 405-4806
Chile + Lime gum from Chargers Candy is simultaneously
sour and spicy. It comes packed in Chargers’ signature battery-shaped
tins, which hold .5 ounces of the gum, which is chile-coated with a lime
center. Chile + Lime gum ships two 24-count displays per case and carries a
suggested retail price of from $1.50 to $1.79. Chargers also offers the gum
in bulk.
Orville Redenbacher’s Drizzlers
ConAgra Snack Foods
(952) 835-6900
Gourmet popcorn, peanuts and toffee get drizzled with
either milk chocolate or white fudge in this new snack item unveiled under
ConAgra’s Orville Redenbacher’s label. Drizzlers come in a
7-ounce cup package or 2-ounce bags. The cups come in 12-count cases. The
bags are shipped in 36-count cases or 6-count clip strips, packed six per
case.
Glacial Breeze Certs
Cadbury Adams USA
(877) 492-3267
The newest Certs flavor is Glacial Breeze. It’s
designed to deliver a bit more intensity than the current Certs roll
flavors. The suggested retail price for Certs Glacial Breeze is 69 cents to
79 cents.
Popping Cotton Candy Swirlz
Taste of Nature
(310) 396-4433
Taste of Nature has launched a popping version of its
Cotton Candy Swirl confection in a Mylar bag. The grape-flavored cotton
candy actually pops in the mouth of the person consuming it. The first SKU
of Popping Cotton Candy Swirlz is a 2.5-ounce bag with a suggested retail
price of $1.49. Cases are packed with 24 units inside. Clip strips and
display-ready cases are available upon request.
Mike and Ike Tangy Twister
Just Born
(800) 445-5787
Just Born is extending the Mike and Ike line with the
rollout of Mike and Ike Tangy Twister. Tangy Twister features cherry,
raspberry, citrus punch, pineapple and apple varieties, all with a high
intensity flavor twist. Made with real fruit juice flavor, Tangy Twister is
available to ship in January. Bold neon orange packaging complements the
pumped-up flavor.
Splurge!
Carbolite Foods
(812) 485-0002
The makers of the Carbolite line of
reduced-carbohydrate products have unveiled Spluge! candy bars also
targeted to people adhering to low-carb lifestyles. The company bills
Splurge! as the first low-carb, maltitol-free chocolate bar. As Carbolite
Foods Vice Chairman Jeff Greder explains, the use of a sweetener blend
(erythritol, oligofructose and fructose) yields a product that is
“tummy-safe” for kids and adults, i.e. it does not produce the
laxative effect or flatulence associated with maltitol. Each bar is flagged
“Maltitol Free!” on the front of the vibrant red foil wrapper.
Net effective carb content also is featured prominently on the front label.
Chocolate Poker Chips
Madelaine Chocolate Novelties
(718) 945-1500
Madelaine is extending its line of solid milk
chocolate poker chips by minting new denominations. These $10, $50 and $500
solid milk chocolate disks are wrapped in colorful foil. They are a perfect
complement to Madelaine’s original $5, $25 and $100 chips and mint
truffle playing cards.
New Chocolate Bars
Chocolove
(303) 786-7888
Premium Belgian chocolate bar manufacturer Chocolove
has introduced chocolate bars in a new form that features bite-sized
squares, each with Chocolove’s trademarked heart insignia. The bar
wrap is designed to resemble a letter, complete with a “stamp.”
Each package contains a love poem, and the cocoa content is prominently
featured on the package. Chocolove offers the bars to retailers in a
“slide-rite” 12-pack carton. The 3.2-ounce bars have a
suggested retail price of $2.49.
New X-It Gum
Unica Inc.
(630) 790-8107
Unica extends its line of value-added gums with new
X-It Sugar-Free Gum formulated with green tea and what the company bills as
“an advanced whitening formula.” It’s available in
peppermint and spearmint varieties and comes packaged in recloseable tins.
The gum has a suggested retail price of $1.99 and comes in 12-count
displays packed 12 per case.
Candy Wands and More
Sherwood Brands
(301) 309-6161
New Wanderfuls are fruit-flavored candy wands that come
in fun, twisted shapes geared specifically to seasonal occasions.
Also new from Sherwood Brands are Magic Dips Lollipops with Popping Candy Dips. To enjoy them, you lick the fruit-flavored pop and dip it
into the Magic Dips pouch. Your pop will be covered with sweet Magic Dust
that will begin popping when you put it in your mouth. Strawberry, grape,
lemon and watermelon flavors are offered.
Sugar-Free Line Extensions
Sherwood Brands
(301) 309-6161
Sherwood Brands has added sugar-free versions to two
of its most popular lines. Sugar-Free
Pirate’s Gold Coins are individually
foil-wrapped chocolates in the shape of gold coins packaged in a mesh
pouch. One serving contains 3 grams of carbs.
In addition, the company’s five-flavor line of
individually wrapped Cow Toffees now has two-sugar-free additions. Sugar-Free Soft N’ Chewy Dairy Butter and Hard Butter N’ Cream
Toffees both come in 2.5-ounce bags.
Lil’ Bratz for Valentine’s Day
Flix/Imagings 3
(847) 647-1370
Flix Candy/Imaginings 3 will tap into the cool cachet
of Lil’ Bratz dolls with several items for Valentine’s Day
2005. Offerings include Lil’ Bratz Pop
Flipper, which combines a lollipop and plastic
doll figure for a suggested retail price of $1.99 and Lil’ Bratz Sticker Dispensers,
which feature a candy-filled tube topped by a Lil’ Bratz collectible
figure. Twenty-five Lil’ Bratz stickers are included with the item,
which carries a suggested retail price of $2.99 to $3.99.
Better-for-You Popcorn Snacks
Lesser Evil Snack Co.
(914) 779-3000
This new company has unveiled four popcorn snacks
targeted to consumers seeking better-for-you snack offerings. Varieties
include KettleCorn, SantaFe, SinNamon and BeeNutty! The snacks all start
with air-popped gourmet popcorn and feature added ingredients such as
ground cinnamon, roasted peanuts, diced bell peppers and pumpkin seeds. The
snacks are made without sugar, trans fats and preservatives.
Two pack-types are offered—a single-serve, 2.33-ounce foil bag
and a 3.75-ounce carton with an interior foil bag.
Vanilla Chill Dentyne Ice
Cadbury Adams USA
(877) 492-3267
Vanilla Chill is the newest addition to Cadbury
Adams’ Dentyne Ice line-up. Vanilla Chill began shipping in December.
Cadbury Adams marketers report that a strong program of advertising and
support is planned for the Dentyne Ice brand in 2005, including
distribution of more than 12.5 million samples to consumers.
Sunflower Seeds Travel Cup
ConAgra Foods
(952) 835-6900
David Roasted and Salted Sunflower Seeds now come in a
4.5-ounce travel cup designed for on-the-go eating occasions. The cups come
shipped in a six-count open stock case. According to the company, it will
soon introduce unique product merchandising displays for secondary
placement near the front of the store in the salty snack section.
New Momints Items
Yosha! Enterprises
(908) 301-1132
Momints liquid-filled mints now come in two new
formats. Momints SuperTube features 15 eight-count tubes encased in a super-size tube for a
suggested retail price of $9.99. Momints Pouch
Tube is an eight-count clear tube of Momints
encased in a translucent pouch. The suggested retail price is 50 cents.
Hot Tamales Fire
Just Born
(800) 445-5787
Starting in January, Just Born will replace its Super
Hot Hot Tamales chewy cinnamon-flavored candies with the re-named Hot
Tamales Fire. A more extreme cinnamon-flavored candy, it comes packaged in
1.1-ounce, 2.12-ounce and 8-ounce packages.
Hot Tamales will also boast more “kick,”
i.e. a more intense cinnamon flavor. New packaging graphics illustrate this
hotter taste with a searing fireball and a spiced-up Hot Tamales logo. Hot
Tamales are available in a 2.12-ounce bag with a suggested retail price of
69 cents.