With retailers turning away from bulk bins and office-goers not filling their candy dishes as often, hard candy sales have sagged throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Encompassing drops and lollipops, the category generated $539.5 million in the year ending June 13, according to IRI, a Chicago-based research firm. That’s down 4.2 percent from a year ago. Additionally, 11 of the Top 20 brands IRI tracks saw sales slumps from 2020 to 2021, with nine of them experiencing double-digit declines.