The Stark Candy Company, originally the Howard B. Stark Company, was a candy manufacturer founded in 1939, in

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. It was a competitor to

Necco Necco (or NECCO ) was an American manufacturer of candy created in 1901 as the New England Confectionery Company through the merger of several small confectionery companies located in the Greater Boston area, with ancestral companies dating b ...

and manufactured products including candy hearts, candy raisins, Mary Janes, peanut butter kisses, salt water taffy, and candy cigarettes. Stark moved from Milwaukee to Pewaukee in 1960. In 1988, it was purchased by Necco. In 2008, Necco announced the Stark plant would close. Candy raisins were discontinued after the company was purchased by Necco, sparking a consumer backlash.

References

Confectionery companies of the United States Companies based in Wisconsin American companies established in 1939 Food and drink companies established in 1939 1939 establishments in Wisconsin 2008 disestablishments in Wisconsin Food and drink companies disestablished in 2008 1988 mergers and acquisitions {{Wisconsin-stub