Astro Pops are transparent three-color cone-shaped

lollipop A lollipop is a type of sugar candy usually consisting of hard candy mounted on a stick and intended for sucking or licking. Different informal terms are used in different places, including lolly, sucker, sticky-pop, etc. Lollipops are av ...

s sold by

Leaf Brands Leaf Brands, LLC is a candy company based in Newport Coast, Newport Beach, California. The original Leaf International (also known as the "Leaf Candy Company") started in the 1940s. Leaf International was once the fourth largest candy producer i ...

History

Astro Pops were first made in 1963 after two

rocket scientists A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely ...

working on the space program in

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decided to quit their jobs and create the Astro Pop, modelling the pop after a three-stage rocket. They hand-built equipment, including machines to speed up the production of the cone wrappers. Astro Pops are unusual because the cone wrapper becomes the mould for the candy. Hot candy is poured directly into the wrapper, then a paper stick is added and the pop is capped off with a layer of wax. Because Astro Pops were created in the 1960s, at the same time in history when the

Space Race The Space Race was a 20th-century competition between two Cold War rivals, the United States and the Soviet Union, to achieve superior spaceflight capability. It had its origins in the ballistic missile-based nuclear arms race between the ...

was in full force, millions of Astro Pops were sold when the manufacturers capitalized on this craze. In 1987,

Spangler Candy Company The Spangler Candy Company is a privately owned international confectioner that has been manufacturing and marketing candy since 1906. Headquartered in Bryan, Ohio, Spangler's products include lollipops, candy canes, and marshmallow circus peanu ...

(the makers of Dum Dums,

Circus Peanuts Circus peanuts are American peanut-shaped marshmallow candy. They date to the 19th century, when they were one of a large variety of unwrapped "penny candy" sold in such retail outlets as five-and-dime stores. As of the 2010s, the most famili ...

and Safe-T-Pops) acquired the Astro Pops brand from the Nellson Candy Company of

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

. The original three flavours of the candy are cherry,

passionfruit ''Passiflora edulis,'' commonly known as passion fruit, is a vine species of passion flower native to southern Brazil through Paraguay and northern Argentina. It is cultivated commercially in tropical and subtropical areas for its sweet, seedy f ...

, and pineapple. Spangler expanded the Astro Pop line of lollipops with flavours such as

banana split A banana split is an American ice cream-based dessert consisting of a peeled banana cut in half lengthwise, and served with ice-cream and sauce between the two pieces. There are many variations, but the classic banana split is made with three sc ...

and

caramel apple Caramel apples or toffee apples are whole apples covered in a layer of caramel. They are created by dipping or rolling apples-on-a-stick in hot caramel, sometimes then rolling them in nuts or other small savories or confections, and allowing th ...

. In 1997, Spangler and the

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convenience store chain were sued by a couple in

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, who alleged that their son was injured by an Astro Pop. At the beginning of 2000, Spangler decided to reverse the shape of the Astro Pop, placing the stick at the tip of the pop, rather than the base. They felt it would give the consumer more surface area to lick. In September 2004, Spangler discontinued the product line. In 2010, Ellia Kassoff purchased the brand. It is now part of Leaf Brands, LLC's portfolio of brands. Leaf has also expanded the Astro Pops franchise to include Astro Pop Asteroids (smaller bite-sized pieces), and Astro Pops Sodas. Kassoff paid Spangler cash for the recipes, global rights to the trademark, and three years of royalty payments. The original manufacturing equipment had been sold for scrap so Leaf had to reinvent the manufacturing process. Kassoff, with his company Strategic Marks, has become known as a "brand revivalist", who revived the Leaf brand that was once owned by his uncle before being acquired by Hershey in 1996. At that time Leaf made candy such as Jolly Ranchers,

Milk Duds Milk Duds are a brand of chocolate-coated caramel candies produced by The Hershey Company. The candy is a caramel ball covered with a confectionery chocolate coating made from cocoa and vegetable oil. Milk Duds are sold in a yellowish-orange box. ...

, and

Whoppers Whoppers are malted milk balls covered with an artificially flavored "chocolatey coating" produced by The Hershey Company. The candy is a small, round ball about in diameter. They are typically sold either in a small cardboard candy box, in a l ...

References

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External links

Astro Pop
(official website) Products introduced in 1963 Brand name confectionery