Hopefully you're all recovering from the candy comas you might have slipped into after eating too much candy on Halloween. Judging from your (or your kids') candy hauls, do you think you could guess the most popular candy in your state? After reading this report from consumer research firm Innerbody, I have to confess my guess for Arizona was woefully wrong—more on that, below.
Innerbody analyzed Google Trends search data over a year to identify the most popular candy in each state. They describe their methodology:
We set a 12-month time period (September 14, 2021–September 14, 2022) and used the numerical search values to determine which popular brands of candy were searched for the most in each state. Then, we analyzed the data to discover which candies were the most popular in which states, as well as which states were the most interested in candy based on the sum of their search values for all of the 24 included candy varieties.
Here are some highlights from their findings:
- Dubble Bubble Gum was the least popular candy in the U.S. by far in 44 states.
- 28 states showed no interest in Dubble Bubble Gum and at least one other type of candy.
- Charms Blow Pops and Jolly Ranchers were tied for the type of candy of greatest interest to the most states (seven).
- In second place was Starburst (six states), Kit Kat (five states) stole third place, and Almond Joy (four states) was our runner-up.
- With the highest combined search value (1,508), Utah is the most candy-loving state.
- Alaska, with the lowest combined search value (616), loved (or at least searched for) candy the least.
So what was Arizona's favorite candy? It's something called Sour Punch Straws, which I've never even heard of. The Phoenix New Times answered some of my questions:
When the study turned its attention to Arizona, Sour Punch Straws came out on top. The sour straws come in flavors like blue raspberry, strawberry and rainbow. More unique versions include pickle and ghost pepper flavors. Sour Punch Bites are also available, which are essentially sliced up straws.
Although ghost pepper Sour Punch Straws intrigue me, because I like hot things, I think I'll stick with my favorite candy, peanut M&Ms. How about you?
Read the rest of the report—which is actually pretty interesting—here.
Previously:
• The Candy Hierarchy
• The 2017 Halloween Candy Hierarchy: Definitely Not Fake News
