Sellers Use Sweet Reason to Boost Sales

The National Candy Wholesalers Assn., aiming to boost the annual candy consumption of Americans to 20 pounds per person from 19.7 pounds, has a list of “Candy Facts” to soothe your guilty conscience and persuade you that sweet treats may even be good for you.

Association President William Elfenbein of Denver admits that some of the statements--such as “Candy doesn’t make you fat” and “Candy is nutritious”--probably would make nutritionists shudder. And he concedes that too much of anything can be bad.

“You wouldn’t want to eat just candy,” said Elfenbein, 53, who is in Atlanta for the group’s convention. “But for most people it could be the bright note in a very dull day.”

Connie Crawley, a registered dietitian at the University of Georgia, agreed balance is the key.

“Sugar has no nutritional value at all except calories. We don’t promote sugar, but we aren’t saying it’s the worst food and you should never eat it again,” she said.

But the 7,000 buyers and distributors attending the convention at the Georgia World Congress Center weren’t counting calories last week as they wandered through a trick-or-treater’s paradise filled with mouth-watering wonders.

They gorged themselves on new and old goodies in a sample room filled with every candy bar imaginable, including favorites such as Zero, Almond Joy, Milky Way, Red Hots and Sweet Tarts.

“We give everybody a sack and let them go through the room. Some eat while they fill up their bags,” said Shelley Grossman Estersohn, communications director for the Washington-based association.

Estersohn said the group is hoping candy consumption will rise on its own to 20 pounds per person by the end of the year. The list of Candy Facts was contained in a handout available to buyers and reporters attending the convention.