Runk Candy
What products are listed for this advertiser?
Made in America Banana Taffy, American Made BB Bats, Made in America Chocolate Taffy, Made in the USA Kits, Made in the USA Marshmallow Cones, Made in America Strawberry Taffy, Made in America Taffy, and Made in America Vanilla Taffy.
The following is what we have pieced together about the history of BB Bats and Kits taffy.
Fair Play Caramel Company (Fair Play Caramels, Inc.) started making the BB Bats and Kits taffy in 1924 in Johnson City, NY. After many years of production by Fair Play, Gilliam Candy bought the brands in 1990 and made them in Paducah, KY. The brands were subsequently licensed to Sophie Mae which made them in Atlanta, GA. Sophie Mae was sold to Georgia Nut which made them under their Family Brands label in Skokie, IL. Some were also sold under the Georgia's Confections name. When Georgia Nut stopped making them, the brands were licensed to Warrell in 2009 and they made the candy at their Warrell Classic plant in York, PA until the fall of 2010. Runk Candy acquired the equipment and brands in the summer of 2011 and re-commenced manufacturing in the spring of 2012 in Cincinnati, OH.
Marshmallow Products (Marpro) was founded in 1936 by John V. Arbino, a tailor. During the Great Depression, Mr. Arbino observed that while people did not always have money for tailor-made clothes, they did always seem to have pennies for candy! So, with that in mind, Mr. Arbino bought a beater and started into the marshmallow candy business ? making clothes during the day and marshmallow treats at night. He made everything he could think of out of marshmallow and on Saturdays he would load up his car and put his products onto city grocery store shelves on consignment. So long as an item sold, he continued to make it. In January of 1964, the founder was succeeded by his son, Jack. The business continued to grow and prosper. By the mid-1970's it was evident that the company's future was the Marshmallow-Filled Ice Cream Cone. All other items were discontinued as the company modernized its equipment and dedicated its resources to the manufacture of this unique item. After a long and successful run, Jack Arbino sold the business in 1999 to a local couple who were already involved in the candy business through Murray Bros. Old Time Stores, a small chain of retail candy stores, which have been operating in Cincinnati since 1858. From their experience in their stores, they knew the Marshmallow Cones were an excellent seller. Shortly thereafter the business moved just a couple miles down the road to a new, modern facility.
Every aspect of the Marshmallow Cone's production has always been done completely in-house at the company's plant -- everything from baking the cone on rotary gas-fired baking machines, to filling it with marshmallow made in a stainless steel kettle, to packing the cone and shipping it from the attached warehouse to its customers ? all made and done entirely in the U.S.A!
Marshmallow Cones continue to be sold by distributors and retailers throughout the United States. In the Cincinnati area they can always be found at Murray Bros. Old Time Stores.
To this day, the formulas and recipes for the marshmallow and the cone remain the same as they were in 1936 and many of the original customers who ate them as kids now enjoy sharing Marshmallow Cones ? and their memories ? with their grandchildren!
The following is a reply from Runk Candy to our question – "Are your products American Made?"
How do you know the products you have listed are Made in the USA?
Before including products in our database we review the advertiser’s website and/or contact them to ascertain the origin of their products. Some advertisers sell both Made in USA products and foreign ones. Therefore we highly recommend you review FAQ 2.
We immediately investigate any complaints regarding deceptive Country of Origin claims. If we determine an advertiser's claim is not truthful we will immediately remove the product/s from our database and suspend our relationship with the Company making the claim.
To document your complaint, email us by using our Contact Us page. We can only respond to complaints that have been submitted in writing.
What does Made in USA mean?
There is no law requiring most products to be labeled Made In USA, or have any other disclosure about the amount of U.S. content. However, for job creation purposes (see our Big Secret tab), if you have a choice between an imported product and one with no country of origin on its label, choose the product without a country of origin over the imported one. This is true because the product without the country origin on its label has at least some American labor in its content and the imported one most likely does not.
Note: Imported products are required by law to country of origin on their label and products partially Made In USA do not. To answer this question completely reviewing our Labeling Tips 1, 2 & 3. These tips are accessible from scrolling to the bottom of our home page clicking Browse All Tips button.