Sour Patch Kids
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Sour Patch Kids are the ultimate comeback story in a bag. They start with an aggressive, face-scrunching sour kick—thanks to a heavy dusting of citric and tartaric acids—before melting into a soft, fruity sweet that makes that initial sting worth it. They aren’t just candy; they’re pop culture chameleons. They actually started in the 70s as “Mars Men” during the space race craze, but when Cabbage Patch Kids dolls became the biggest thing on earth in the 80s, they pivoted and rebranded to the icons we know today.
Sour Patch Kids come in LOTS of flavors and colors such as:
That is all the flavors in the original Sour Patch Kid candy, but there are many more flavors in special items such as the “Sour Patch Kids Watermelon“, “Sour Patch Kids Tropical“, and “Sour Patch Kids Crush Fruit Mix” candies. In total, there are around 30 different Sour Patch Kid flavors! Although Sour Patch Kids are a very popular American candy, the rest of the world has integrated their culture into the sour-sweet candy. In the international world of Sour Patch Kids, the flavors include:
- Blackcurrant (UK/Australia original mix)
- Raspberry (UK/Australia original mix)
- Cola (Brown, found in UK/Australia Soda Popz)
- Orangeade (Orange, found in UK/Australia Soda Popz)
- Cherryade (Red, found in UK/Australia Soda Popz)
- Apple Fizz (Green, found in UK/Australia Soda Popz)
- Watermelon (Pink/Reddish-pink)
- Strawberry (Pink, sometimes exclusive to custom mixes or specific products)
- Grape (Purple, sometimes exclusive to custom mixes)
- Peach (Orange, available as a standalone product)
- Sour Apple (Green, available as a standalone product or in specific mixes)
- Pear (Green, found in Extreme mix)
- Pineapple (White, found in Tropical and Crush mixes)
- Passion Fruit (Purple, found in Tropical mix)
- Paradise Punch (Pink, found in Tropical mix)
- Tropical Twist (Orange, found in Tropical mix)
- Cherry Lime Lemonade (Red/Pink, found in Lemonade Fest mix)
- Strawberry Lemonade (Pink, found in Lemonade Fest mix)
- Blue Raspberry Lemonade (Blue, found in Lemonade Fest mix)
- Berry Blaze (Purple, found in Sour Patch Kids Fire)
- Tropical Flame (Orange, found in Sour Patch Kids Fire)
- Apple Fever (Green, found in Sour Patch Kids Fire)
- Angry Watermelon (Red, found in Sour Patch Kids Fire)
- Rattling Raspberry (Purple, Halloween Zombie mix)
- Ominous Orange (Orange, Halloween Zombie mix)
- Mango (Specific product variant)
- Strawberry-Watermelon (Found in Glow Ups Eggs)
Born in 1941 in Charleston, South Carolina, Frank Galatolie spent his early life in the United States, eventually studying engineering and graduating in 1958. In the early 1970s, while working as a confectioner at Jaret International, he developed a sour-then-sweet candy originally called Mars Men. These treats were initially shaped like aliens to capitalize on the era’s space exploration craze. By 1985, the candy was rebranded as Sour Patch Kids to tap into the massive popularity of the Cabbage Patch Kids doll phenomenon, with the first mascot even being modeled after Galatolie’s own son, Scott.
