Candy Critic Statistics

So this past weekend we finally finished putting together the database for all of the candies reviewed on candycritic.org so far. It was way more reviews than we were expecting with well over twelve hundred. One thing that made me feel good about the reviews was the scoring. If you look at the graph above showing the number of candies that have any particular score, you'll see a fairly good curve. Each bar represents a score starting at 0 and going to 14.5 (there's a reason that there's no 15) in increments of  .5. The curve does lean slightly towards the better end, but that's because it's candy.  This  information will be used on the new site when we start listing the candies according to score.

This next graph shows all of the different candy brands that have more than 10 reviews on the site. The first bar is actually our question mark category, because we don't know the brands of some of the candies we've reviewed. We're hoping to lower that number down a lot and might be asking some of our readers to help with that.  This graph is very useful right now because we're presently building a section that will feature our most represented brands on the website. I took a guess at what these would be on my initial design, but I got a couple wrong.

This graph  features one of the new additions to the site that I'm most excited about. We're going to start listing some of the candies that have many different varieties. This includes Kit Kat, Lay's, and Pocky, to name a few. I love the idea of collecting varieties of candies, and I'm hoping this section grows in the  years to come.

While these are likely the dullest representations of candy that you can imagine, it's become a really valuable tool for us while updating candycritic.org. In the past the organization has been done slightly randomly, but with this database we're hoping that it will come together in a much more organized way.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter and Facebook to keep up with all of the work we're doing to update the site.

You can also follow us on Patreon and help us build this site by signing up.

CC

A Little Bit Of Re-Designing

You might notice that some of the photos on this blog are starting to come up bigger, and at this point kind of random in size.  Well I'm experimenting with photo sizes and I want to see what works and what doesn't.  Once I'm happy with a look I'll stop messing around.

CC

Last Minute Halloween Link Roundup

A whole bunch of fun articles about Halloween coming my way today. I figure the best thing I can do is smush them together into one big post.

Here's an article about the truth/myth of dangerous Halloween candy.

Godiva is discounting their Halloween treats early this year. It's a good deal because it tastes the same as the non-Halloween stuff anyways.

Here's a great list of foodie Halloween costumes, some sweet treats included.

Here are some reasons you should eat your treats this Halloween... Like you needed any.

CC

I Love A Retro Look

While trying to come up with a new look for www.candycritic.org, I've been considering going a little retro. The folks at Mello Yello have have done just that and it looks spectacular. It's a great design and really inspirational.

Click here to check it out.

CC

You'd Think I Love Everything Candy Wouldn't You

Well you'd be wrong, in fact there is a whole bunch of things that I really don't think about that much in candy. Well I think about it, skim a few articles here and there, but frankly I don't really focus on the business side of candy. I think it's important because things like price and quality of treats depends greatly on this, but it's really boring to read about and when given the choice between that and tasting some new fangled ice cream I think the choice is clear.

Click here to read about the Confectionery report from Venezuela.

Click here to read about the Confectionery report from Slovakia

CC

Unhealthy Drinks and Their Unhealthy Counterparts

This article highlighting the 20 worst drinks in America is supposed to give you a comparison as to how many and which kind of unhealthy treat each serving represents. I'm sure it's supposed to scare you away from drinking the various drinks but it didn't work on me. Instead I see this list as a suggested pairing list, kind of like red wine with beef.

Click here to read more.

CC

Updated Candy Critic Site

I'm not sure if I mentioned this but I've decided to re-vamp www.candycritic.org. It was a fine design a few years ago and it worked for a while, but right now I'm really not happy with it. Above is a sketch of the new design... a really rough sketch. For the next little while I'm going to poke and prod at the design, but come late August early September I'm going to shift the update into high gear. If anybody has any tips, ideas, or problems with the current site I'd like to hear about them.

CC

For the Love Of Chocolate

The writings of a Chocolate fanatic.

Click here to read it.

CC

Very In depth Look At Nutrition In Candy

I've argued a million times that the arguments against candy and health are often skewed to be against anything sweet. My argument is always to eat in moderation and eat what you love. This article looks at particular treats and examines the ingredients to give you an idea of what's actually in them. I don't mind that at all, but I'd also like to see the same thing done to a cup of fat free yogurt, or a "healthy" frozen meal.

Click here to read more.

CC

More Heartwarming News About Chocolate

Yet another article singing the praises of chocolate. This particular one mentions how good it can be for your heart.

Click here to read about it.

CC

Peeps Diorama

The Washington Post has a great photo collection of Marshmallow Peeps dioramas. Some are themed off movies, some are funny, and a few are disturbing.

Click here to see the whole gallery.

CC

It's Not Really New News, But It's Still Good News

Here's yet again another article talking about the fine health qualities of chocolate.

Enjoy reading this with your favourite bar.

CC

This Man Hates Tootsie Rolls

I don't really understand his pure hatred for these treats, and I can't figure out why he would compare Tootsie Rolls to chocolate bars. But I guess all are entitled to their own opinion.

Click here to read the Tootsie Roll Bashing.

CC

Not Convinced Chocolate Is Good For You?

Well here's another article with more facts.

Click here to feel better about your chocolate habits.

CC

The Evils of Sugar

Here's an interesting article about the "evils of sugar". More importantly it looks at some of the misconceptions of these evils.

Click here to read and learn.

CC

So You Like Dark Chocolate?

And you've heard that it's really good for you. Here's a guide to help you pick the best quality and make sure it's still pretty healthy for you.

Click here to check it out.

CC

Once Again They Go With Sugar

As I had posted below some companies are starting to change from Corn Syrup to real sugar in many of their snacks. Here’s news of even more of that switch. At first I thought it was kind of silly but my friend Jen (who posted a few comments) was overjoyed because she has a corn allergy and corn syrup would often limit her snacking abilities.

Sugar Bumps HFCS On Snack Labels - Candy & Snack TODAY

Chocolate and Cancer, Advice from a Guy Named Dr. Bone

It's not that I think his advice is wrong, I just think that it loses a little credibility when you guy by the name Dr. Bone... Unless you happen to work on a spaceship in the future, then maybe you can get away with it.

Click here to read the words of Dr Bone.

CC

Four Trends in Candy

So you want to start a candy company, you think you have the perfect idea. If your idea happens to fit into the four categories listed on this link then you'll probably be in good shape. If you want the Candy Critic to give it stellar reviews then really you only have to fit into one category, and it doesn't change annually, “be creative”.

Click here to read more about these trends.

CC

A Clean Candy Factory Makes Me Happy

I never really think about how clean candy factories are only because I'm afraid of what might the reality. Apparently the folks in this article have done really well, I just hope that the difference between the best and worst is fairly minimal and that it was a close race.

Click here to read about a quality and clean candy factory.

CC