National Smarties Day

National Smarties Day celebrates the legacy of Smarties candy, the vision of the candy company's founder to inspire life-long learning, and his achievement of the American dream by creating the iconic candy. After sailing from England, Edward Dee arrived in New Jersey on January 10, 1949. A second-generation candy maker, he carried with him two candy-making machines and the dream of bringing his family's candy-making tradition to the United States. He set the machines up in a rented facility in Bloomfield, New Jersey, and founded his company, Ce De Candy, that August. Dee created Smarties, which have been a staple candy for generations. Over 2 billion rolls of Smarties are made every year.

Dee moved the company to Elizabeth, New Jersey, in 1959, and to Union, New Jersey, in 1967. He also opened a factory in Toronto, Ontario, in 1963. He moved his Canadian factory to Newmarket, Ontario, in 1988. In Canada, Smarties are called Rockets. The colors that end up in each Smarties candy roll are random. Just what flavors are these random colors? Pink is cherry, green is strawberry, orange is orange, white is orange cream, yellow is pineapple, and purple is grape. In 2011, the name of Ce De Candy was changed to the Smarties Candy Company. Edward Dee passed away in 2019 at the age of 95.

The first National Smarties Day was observed on October 2, 2022, on what would have been Edward Dee's 98th birthday. At the time of the holiday's founding, the Smarties Candy Company was headed by Edward Dee's three granddaughters: Jessica Dee Sawyer, Sarah Dee, and Liz Dee. For the first year of observance, there was a Smarties Challenge on TikTok. Those participating were entered for a chance to win a year's supply of Smarties, and $25,000 was raised for classrooms.

How to Observe National Smarties Day

• Buy and eat some rolls of Smarties and some Smarties Lollies.
• Make a recipe using Smarties.
• Watch a tour of the Smarties factory.
• See if there is anything specific happening in honor of this year's National Smarties Day. Stay up to date by following Smarties on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. You could also follow the Facebook for Rockets.

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