When I read the headline in yesterday’s Chicago Tribune that Mars Wrigley Confectionery was going to base its U.S. headquarters in Hackettstown and Newark, N.J., I was — to put it mildly — devastated.
L.A. Burdick Handmade Chocolates has had a big year. The Wapole, N.H.-based company, known for crafting European-inspired bonbons for a devoted following in New England, marked 30 years in operation.
On July 1, consumers living in Cook County, a good chunk of Chicagoland, were greeted with a new tax, one that slapped a penny surcharge on every ounce of sweetened beverage, which included items such as soda, sports drinks, flavored water, energy drinks, pre-made sweetened coffee and tea with less than 50 percent milk content, among others.