Jelly Drops is a British

confectionery Confectionery is the Art (skill), art of making confections, or sweet foods. Confections are items that are rich in sugar and carbohydrates, although exact definitions are difficult. In general, however, confections are divided into two bro ...

company, based in London, England. It produces

sugar-free A sugar substitute or artificial sweetener, is a food additive that provides a sweetness like that of sugar while containing significantly less food energy than sugar-based sweeteners, making it a zero-calorie () or low-calorie sweetener. Ar ...

gummy candy Gummies, fruitgums, gummi candies, gummy candies, or jelly sweets are a broad category of gelatin-based chewable sweets. Popular types include gummy bears, Sour Patch Kids, Jelly Babies and gummy worms. Various brands such as Bassett's, Har ...

that is made of 95% water, designed to support increased hydration in people who are susceptible to becoming

dehydrated In physiology, dehydration is a lack of total body water that disrupts Metabolism, metabolic processes. It occurs when free water loss exceeds intake, often resulting from excessive sweating, health conditions, or inadequate consumption of wate ...

. It was founded on 28 August 2018 by Lewis Hornby, who was inspired by his elderly grandmother Pat who had

dementia Dementia is a syndrome associated with many neurodegenerative diseases, characterized by a general decline in cognitive abilities that affects a person's ability to perform activities of daily living, everyday activities. This typically invo ...

and was hospitalized for dehydration. Jelly Drops are also vegan.

History

Hornby, a 24-year-old

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public university, public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City, London, White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design uni ...

student, conceived of the idea when his grandmother almost died of dehydration. He spent a month in her nursing home and noted that while many people with dementia refused to drink, did not feel thirst or failed to recognize cups, they would still eat confections. He began prototyping sweets that would deliver water and

electrolytes An electrolyte is a substance that conducts electricity through the movement of ions, but not through the movement of electrons. This includes most soluble salts, acids, and bases, dissolved in a polar solvent like water. Upon dissolving, t ...

to such people, additionally using it as part of his Innovation Design Engineering degree. When a video of Hornby and his grandmother sharing the treats was shared on

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

, it received over 48 million views, with one viewer setting up a

JustGiving JustGiving is a global online social platform for giving. The firm's headquarters are located in Bankside, London, England. History In 2000, Zarine Kharas and Anne-Marie Huby founded JustGiving (initially clickforaction.com), a company to ...

page that raised more than £9,000 in order to help bring the product to market. In 2019, Jelly Drops received a further £100,000 grant, along with access to a network of industry experts, from the

Alzheimer's Society Alzheimer's Society is a United Kingdom care and research charity for people with dementia and their carers. It operates in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, while its sister charities Alzheimer Scotland and Alzheimer Society of Ireland co ...

as part of their ''Accelerator Programme'', designed to support products intending to improve care and lifestyle quality of those living with dementia. In return for the charity's investment, Jelly Drops pledged to donate 1% of its profits to help fund further Alzheimer's research. Jelly Drops launched to the public in the United Kingdom in 2020, and in the United States in 2022. The confectionery is also reportedly used in healthcare settings including in NHS wards.

Awards and accolades

* Pitch@Palace Award 2019 * World Innovation Forum IMAGINE IF! Award 2019 * Dubai Design Week Progress Prize finalist * Dyson School of Design Engineering DESIRE Award for Social Impact * Helen Hamlyn Design Awards 2018 - Snowdon Award For Disability

References

External links

* {{official, https://www.jellydrops.com/ Food brands of the United Kingdom Snack food manufacturers of the United Kingdom Food and drink companies of England Companies based in London Food manufacturers based in London Food technology Gummi candies British confectionery British companies established in 2018