Inside a jelly bean factory

March 25, 1997

From Correspondent Don Knapp

FAIRFIELD, California (CNN) -- Tasty, colorful and fat free. What's not to like about jelly beans?

Visitors to the famous Jelly Belly factory, like the wine tours in nearby Napa and Sonoma Valleys, pack the cat walks above the factory floor. Even the jelly bean cooks draw crowds.

"They like to come and see how it's all done. And everybody thinks this is like Willie Wonka," says Jelly Belly worker Carol Cruz.

Jelly Belly owes a lot of its success to President Reagan, whose sweet tooth and affinity for the candy started a nationwide craze in 1980. The Jelly Belly business then tripled in two years.

The Jelly Belly marketing director has a simple definition of jelly beans. He spells out the word 'fun.' "Three letters," he adds "that describe the essence of Jelly Belly Beans."

However much fun jelly beans may be to eat, making them is a long and intricate process. Well-trained hands attend to transforming the sugar, corn syrup and flavorings into the final product.

The seasoned workers inspect each bean during the process, making sure it has the right texture and feel.

"You have to read the candy. You have to make sure the candy's taking the sugar the way you want it," says jelly bean-maker Rodney Johnson.

The actual process takes seven days before a final coat of carnuba wax is applied.

The finished beans are scanned along a conveyor belt for any imperfections.

As the tour draws to a close, visitors sample over 20 varieties of Jelly Belly Beans.

"They ain't good for your teeth," Cruz says of jelly beans "but they make you smile, right?"

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