Love it or hate it, feelings run high over candy corn come Halloween

By LEANNE ITALIE
AP Entertainment Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Cruel joke for trick-or-treaters or coveted seasonal delight? The great Halloween debate over candy corn is on. In the pantheon of high-emotion candy, the shiny tricolor kernels in white, orange and yellow are way up there. Fans and foes alike point to the same attributes: a texture that’s plastic or candle-like, depending on who you ask. And the mega-sugar hit it packs. Some say it conjures childhood memories. Love it or loathe it, market leader Brach’s churns out about 30 million pounds of candy corn for the fall season each year. Last year, that amounted to $75 million of $88.5 million in candy corn sales.