Pez
PEZ candy pieces
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| Course | Candy | ||||||
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| Place of origin | Austria | ||||||
| Region or state | Vienna | ||||||
| Creator | Eduard Haas III | ||||||
| Invented | 1927 | ||||||
| Main ingredients | Sugar | ||||||
| Variations | Many flavors | ||||||
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| Other information | http://www.pez.at/ | ||||||
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| Protein | 0 g |
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| Fat | 0 g |
| Carbohydrate | 7.9 g |
Pez (trademarked PEZ in capitals) is the brand name of an Austrian candy and their famous mechanical pocket dispensers. The candy itself takes the shape of pressed, dry, straight-edged, curved-corner blocks (15 mm (5/8 inch) long, 8 mm (5/16 inch) wide, and 5 mm (3/16 inch) high), with Pez dispensers holding 12 Pez pieces.
Pez was originally introduced in Austria, later exported, notably to the U.S., and eventually became available worldwide. The all-uppercase spelling of the logo echoes the trademark's style on the packaging and the dispensers themselves, with the logo drawn in perspective and giving the appearance that the letters are built out of 44 brick-like Pez candies (14 bricks in the P and 15 in each of the E and Z).
Despite the widespread recognition and popularity of the Pez dispenser, the company considers itself to be primarily a candy company, and over 3 billion candy bricks are consumed each year in the U.S. alone. Pez dispensers are part of popular culture in many nations, an example being 'Soul Candy' in Japanese manga series Bleach. Because of the large number of dispenser designs over the years, they are collected by enthusiasts.
Pez was first marketed as a compressed peppermint sweet in Vienna, Austria in 1927 by a candy maker named Eduard Haas III. The name PEZ is an abbreviation of PfeffErminZ (German for peppermint). Haas created the peppermints using family owned baking powders, and decided to serve the mints in small, hand-size containers. He manufactured a small tin to hold the mints, similar to the modern Altoids tins. The first Pez mint dispensers, known as "regulars," were similar in shape to a cigarette lighter, and dispensed an adult breath mint marketed as an alternative to smoking. They were invented by Oscar Uxa. Haas Food Manufacturing Corporation of Vienna was the first to sell Pez products.
World War II slowed marketing and production. In 1945, manufacturers devised and promoted the Pez Box Regular. In 1952 Eduard Haas introduced his product to the United States, and Curtis Allina headed Pez's U.S. business. In 1955, the Pez company placed heads on the dispensers and marketed them for children. Santa Claus and Mickey Mouse were among the first character dispensers. Since 1950, over 1500 Pez dispensers, including the original character dispensers, have been created.
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