The Utah-Famous Treat That You'll Want To Grab At Costco Immediately
When it comes to sweet treats, some foods have found success in specific parts of the country. Ohio is known for its peanut butter chocolate buckeyes, and biscochitos are beloved in New Mexico. Utah residents are fans of a spicy-sweet flavor combination: cinnamon-flavored gummy bears, covered in milk chocolate.
Sweet Candy Company, based in Salt Lake City, Utah, credits "regional flavor" with the success of its chocolate-covered cinnamon bears. The company's VP of corporate affairs, Rachel Sweet, told The Salt Lake Tribune that the cinnamon flavor is "not popular in the Great Lakes area or even the East Coast." The company has been making candies since 1892, and its chocolate-covered cinnamon bears have been around since the 1990s.
However, sales of the sweets have picked up in the last few years, potentially thanks to rebranding efforts. The cinnamon and chocolate treats can now be found in a few different stores, including Costco.
Chocolate and cinnamon combine for a sweet treat
Outside of Utah, one TikTok user found the chocolate-covered cinnamon bears in their local Costco. The account, called "Costco Guide," shares new and exciting Costco products. The TikToker, Angela, found a bag of the bears from Sweet Candy Company and grabbed it to review at home. The TikTok user called them "one of the best ... treats I've ever had."
@costcoguide These chocolate covered cinnamon bears at Costco are SOOOO Good! I cant stop eating them. Please sell them out so I cant access them 😅🫣 #costco #costcofinds #foodies #costcoguide @foodies
The user shows the inside of the treat after taking a bite, revealing the chewy, red cinnamon center, coated in a milk chocolate shell. While the inside of the candies may be slightly spiced thanks to the cinnamon flavor, the chocolatey exterior complements it with its sweet coating. "The combination sounds weird, but they are amazing," Angela says in the video.
Some commenters on the March TikTok video noted that the candies were also spotted at Walmart during the winter holiday season.
The cinnamon bears are available in other stores, too
Sweet Candy Company also sells its chewy cinnamon bears without a chocolate coating. The brand sells more than four million pounds of the standard version each year, while it produces about one million pounds of the chocolate-coated candies annually.
Despite the overall popularity difference, students at Brigham Young University seem to have the opposite preference. The campus store in Provo sells both versions, but the store's manager claims the chocolate version "outsells [the original] about 50 to one," according to The Salt Lake Tribune. The store sells plenty of the candies as add-ons to other purchases, too, and it ships them to customers in 143 different countries.
If you don't have a Costco membership or your local warehouse doesn't carry the gummy bears, the candies can also be purchased at Walmart, Smith's Food & Drug, Harmons, and Associated Food Stores. You can also order the bears on the Sweet Candy Company's website.