Swedish loose candy is almost a ritual that comes out every Saturday. Suddenly there is a bowl of sweet, salty, sour and maybe licorice on the table.
The idea of being able to pick one’s favorite candies from the assortment was coined in 1985 when the Swedish Food Agency recommended the Swedish Health Board to allow this type of sale. But with a requirement that the candies be in separate containers and picked with a spoon or scoop to remain hygienic, writes Ica the story.
That is how it is to this day. But there are many people who believe that loose candy is not particularly hygienic and that stomach ailments can spread through the loose candy. Is this myth true?
What happened to the Bubs candy?
The Swedish candy Bubs has echoed empty on the shelves and at the same time Americans have discovered the Swedish loose candy and started to demand it. This has led to several wild rumors and conspiracy theories on social media that Americans have bought up all the Bubs.
But what is really true and what has happened to the popular candy?
News24 have gone to the bottom of what applies and how things really are with Bubs.
Loose candy. Photo: Johan Nilsson/TT
READ MORE: Will Bub’s sweets stop being sold in Sweden? Here is the answer
Popular sweets can contain harmful substances
It is not only Swedish loose candy that has attracted attention on social media. On Tiktok, videos of people eating candies called “Wax candy”, which can be very harmful, are currently trending.
The candy has been around for a long time in the US and recently it has also been noticed by Chinese creators. Chinese authorities have warned of the candy’s health effects. The candy is not produced in Sweden but can easily be ordered into the country.
READ MORE: The authority warns of new candy trend: “Not good at all”
How much bacteria ends up on loose candy?
Swedish loose candy has long been criticized for not being hygienic and for being able to cause stomach ailments between people. But how true is this myth?
– It’s far too dry and there’s a lot of sugar in it, and bacteria don’t thrive there, it’s not the environment they want to grow in, says Britt Carlssonfood inspector at the environmental administration in Karlstad, to P4 The valleys.
She also dispels the myth that loose sweets carry an increased risk of being infected with viruses.
– There is a theoretical possibility that you could take some candy and ingest something, but I’m not aware that it has ever happened that there has been an outbreak of stomach disease due to loose candy, she says.
But she points out that hygiene is required to prevent viruses from spreading.
– Then you don’t want people picking with their hands and grabbing things and such. You prefer to use a clean spoon and that it is possible to take a clean spoon every time and to think about the next customer who comes there, she says.
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