Before I headed off to my friend’s wedding, I had one very important stop to make. My sister and I drove to the local candy store on a mission: find Sunkist Fruit Gems for the aufruf.
We searched the whole store until we finally found a large bag of the sugary, chewy candies. When I handed my basket to the cashier, she looked quite confused. Though I was also purchasing an entire box of jumbo Smarties, she had many questions about the Fruit Gems.
“You need this big of a bag? What are you possibly doing with all of these?”
I told her they were for a wedding. Despite us being in a very Jewish part of Cleveland, that only furthered her confusion.
Though just a regular candy to the majority, Sunkist Fruit Gems hold a very special place in the North American Jewish community. Developed in the 1930s as a way to use the overabundance of citrus fruits, they have become a quintessential part of bar and bat mitzvahs, weddings, Purim mishloach manot bags and Hebrew school treats.
Affectionately called “temple candies” by my family, they are synonymous with North American Jewish culture. When brought up in conversation with fellow Jewish people, the topic is always met with a burst of excitement regarding their seemingly universal adoration and importance. They became popular in synagogues as they contain all the perfect attributes for their very specific job: small, individually wrapped, kosher, delicious and, most importantly: soft enough to throw at people on the bimah.
When I walked into the synagogue for the aufruf, I ran up to my friend and gave her a big hug. Then I pulled out the candy bag. She squealed with delight and hugged me harder. She exclaimed how her bridesmaids were panicking the night before, realizing no one had bought any, but now we were prepared. I explained to my non-Jewish friends before the ceremony exactly how it would go—the rabbi would bless the couple, we would sing “Siman tov u’mazel tov” and then we would shower them in temple candies.
Sunkist Fruit Gems have always had a special place in my life. When I was younger, they were a treat from the rabbi following the “Torah parade”—our Shabbat tradition where after the ark is opened, kids carrying stuffed Torahs follow the adults with the real Torahs around the sanctuary, and then return to the bimah to get candy from the rabbi. We would run back to the kids’ sanctuary and compare flavors, fighting over who would get the red ones.
When I became a teenager, Fruit Gems were the candy we threw at my friends celebrating their b’nai mitzvahfollowing the Haftarah and their completion of leading the service. And now, I am buying them for my friends’ weddings, continuing to mark each life milestone with a little token of sweetness.
My sister says Sunkist Fruit Gems will always taste best out of that random drawer on the bimah our rabbi kept them in. Others would argue it’s out of a tallis bag, a purse, or picked up off the floor post-candy shower. My cousin reminded me how her grandfather—my great-grandfather—always kept one in his suit coat pocket.
Their belovedness across all generations is widespread, which made candy manufacturer Ferrara’s recent announcement that they were discontinuing Sunkist Fruit Gems even more jarring. With their perpetual existence in Jewish spaces, it never occurred to me that one day, they would just cease to exist.
The sentiment towards this tragedy was felt by so many—but especially those in the Jewish community. Last week, my social media was filled with people posting their disbelief, sadness and anger at the news. I saw a flyer of someone hosting an actual Mourner’s Kaddish for the candies. One rabbi was launching an event to help identify the candy’s successor. Parents all over wondered what they would do for the children’s future b’nai mitzvahs.
In my grief, I decided to create a petition to Ferrara in hopes of recontinuing production. Their reasoning for discontinuation was “due to lack of consumer demands across the country,” but also likely part of Ferrara’s revamp of the Jelly Belly brand (the most recent owners of the candy, whom Ferrara purchased in 2023). I wanted to prove that there is indeed a demand, and I very quickly got nearly 1000 signatures. Within the petition are many comments of support, though I feel Teri’s speaks for us all: “…This is a niche market, but it’s an important one.”
Teri’s sentiment voices what we all feel inside: that even though the Jewish community is small, we are a consumer demographic that matters. Thankfully, our pleas were heard. It’s hard to say whether it was because of the petition, journalists decrying the news, or thousands of Jewish people across all denominations having a collective breakdown on social media, but this past weekend, Sunkist announced that Fruit Gems are only temporarily unavailable. As they explained in a statement to social media, they are returning to the candy’s family-owned business roots and joining forces with a small candy company. They promised that when they do come back, they’ll have the same great flavor and kosher certification.
So fear not. Sunkist Fruit Gems will continue to be present, as they have been over the years from my great-grandfather’s suit jacket to next weekend’s b’nai mitzvah. May we continue to create memories of the aerodynamically delicious temple candies to carry with us for generations to come.
Sophie Bravo is a contributing writer to My Jewish Learning and KIDDISH Magazine.