Reuters piece on a candy cane maker
December 23, 2001
Candy Cane Maker Feeds U.S. Sweet Tooth
By REUTERS
Filed at 10:14 a.m. ET
ATLANTA (Reuters) - If a sweet tooth has
you reaching for a candy cane during the
holidays, there is a good chance the object of
your cravings came from southern Georgia.
Bobs Candies, a family-run candy maker based
in Albany, Ga., has churned out 525 million of
the crooked sugary treats, or about 30 to 35
percent of U.S. candy cane production, in
preparation for Christmas this year.
To accomplish all that, the family business requires a hefty dose of high
technology and a sharp focus on fast-changing U.S. trade rules and global sugar
market trends.
Indeed, some might say that to remain viable in the highly competitive market --
where individually wrapped candy canes sell for just pennies apiece -- requires a
Scrooge-like attention to detail.
Candy canes date back 400 years to Germany, but the technology used by Bobs
borrows from the space program and high-tech automation.
``(The cane) is and always has been in the shape of a shepherd's crook and that
was its intent,'' said Greg McCormack, 47, chief executive officer and president
of the candy maker founded by his family 82 years ago, He now runs the
privately owned company with help from two sisters.
McCormack speaks fondly of the history and symbolism associated with his
product. But the avid cyclist and in-line skater runs a business with more than
$40 million in annual sales that requires more than a few tough decisions.
Recently his company laid off 54 employees, or about 12 percent of the
workforce in Albany, about 170 miles south of Atlanta.
Next year, Bobs plans to move about half of its candy cane production to its
plant in Reynosa, Mexico, which is already producing another type of sweet.
The shift to Mexico was prompted largely by the cost of sugar, which,
McCormack contends, is effectively doubled by U.S. farm price support
programs. He said that subsidies built into the Farm Bill cost Bobs about $4
million each year.
McCormack said he had lobbied intensively over the years to have the subsidies
either reduced or eliminated, but noted that he had made little headway with
politicians who support protection for sugar growers and other agricultural
producers.
The company had managed to gobble up such a large share of the candy cane
market -- its main competitor is privately owned Spangler Candy Company of
Bryan, Ohio -- through a willingness to invest in sophisticated technology to
maintain quality control.
In 1987 NASA scientists, using the same principles that helped cool the space
shuttle, developed a temperature-control system that keeps Bobs warehouse at a
constant 78 degrees Fahrenheit, with humidity of 40 percent.
Candy canes are made from a blend of sugar and corn syrup that is cooked into
an amber-colored mass, cooled, and then cut and twisted into their final form.
Flavoring and color are added during the process.
Candy canes, which come in a variety of flavors ranging from the familiar
peppermint to the less traditional mango, are a symbol of the holidays and a
popular ornament on Christmas trees.
``The candy cane is one of the few decorative things that we still have at
Christmas that retains the original symbolic meaning,'' said McCormack.
While the crook symbolized the staffs carried by shepherds visiting the newborn
Jesus in Bethlehem, the red stripes were originally intended to represent the blood
shed by Christ at the time of his scourging and crucifixion,
Candy canes were, according to popular legend, invented in the 1600s in
Cologne, Germany, by a choirmaster who shaped sugar sticks into shepherds'
crooks in an effort to focus the attention of his restless students during a lengthy
nativity program.
About two centuries later in somewhat parallel fashion, a U.S. Midwestern
confectioner decided to make holiday candy for children as a reminder of Jesus
Christ's life and death.
The art of candy-cane making was labor-intensive until the 1950s when
McCormack's great-uncle, a Catholic priest, invented a machine that speeded up
production. The creation of patented box and case designs also made it possible
for Bobs to safely ship the delicate candy.
McCormack concedes that the lower cost of labor in Mexico has benefited the
company as well.
As one of the bigger employers in Albany, Bobs has wielded considerable
influence there. Although the job cuts have hurt, civic leaders say they are
convinced that the company's roots will keep it from departing the town for
good.
``When you think of Albany, you think of Bobs. When you think of Bobs, you
think of Albany,'' said Tim Martin, president of the Albany Chamber of
Commerce. ``Everybody loves Bobs.''
While the production might move abroad, the marketing and consumption of the
candy canes will remain decidedly American. Even though Canadians and
Australians enjoy the seasonal treat, the United States is the main market for
candy canes.
But despite a year in which this country is clinging to many traditions in the
aftermath of the September terror attacks, McCormack hasn't noticed any
increased demand for his product. So far, he says, it looks like candy canes are
business ``as usual.''
Copyright 2001 Reuters Ltd. |
