Is it a cake or is it a buscuit? You decide!

The original recipe for McVitie’s Jaffa Cakes is a closely guarded secret, the delicious combination of light sponge, dark chocolate and smashing orangey bit in the middle was first created over 60 years ago.

Back in 1991, McVitie’s Biscuits fought a battle with the VAT man to prove that Jaffa Cakes are cakes, not biscuits, and therefore should not attract VAT.

In 1994 McVitie’s launched Mini Jaffa Cakes and Jaffa Cake Bars, to appeal to the growing lunchbox market. 1999 saw the introduction of the innovative ‘Tubes’ packaging and 2002 was the year of the Jaffa Mini Roll launch.

Jaffa Cakes are known for being irresistible but unfortunately, not everyone is prepared to get their Jaffa Cakes honestly. Remember the Munchkins, who would do almost anything to get hold them! They were followed by another desperate mob in the 1990’s known as the Orangey Tangs who loved the orangey bit in the middle so much so we had to completely cover the Jaffa Cakes in chocolate, for a limited time, to keep them out.

The Jaffa Cakes brand team scored a McVitie’s first in July 2000, when they signed a sponsorship deal with Manchester United. Jaffa Cakes became one of Man Utd’s eleven ‘platinum’ sponsors but the only one focussing on kids in the UK. Jaffa Cakes were already enjoyed by the team and were officially launched as the teams favourite half time snack. The campaign’s success was based on the product truth that Jaffa Cakes are low in fat and high in carbohydrates and so are a great energy provider.

It was for this very reason that Sven announced that Jaffa Cakes would join the England squad in Japan for the 2002 World Cup as part of their training diet. The publicity was amazing, culminating in a spectacular story of a McVitie’s Jaffa Cake being found with the face of David Beckham, the team captain, on it!!!

In 2006 the fact that each Jaffa Cake is only 1g of fat has featured in the new advertising.

Two new flavour variants were launched in February 2006:

Lemon & Lime
Blackcurrant

Jaffa cakes were the official energy snack of the England Football team in the 2006 World Cup.

Very hard, very hot sweets with a bubble gum centre.

Very hard, very sour sweets with a bubble gum centre.

Very hard, fruity sweets with a bubble gum centre.

Originally known as Peace Babies, Jelly Babies were launched in 1919 Years ago by Bassett's - one of Britain's oldest sweets manufacturers - to celebrate the end of the first world war
Peace Babies were popular between the wars, but production ceased in the Second World War because of a shortage of raw materials. They came back in 1953, renamed Jelly Babies.

In 1989 Bassett's itself was gobbled up by Cadbury Schweppes, who had also acquired Trebor, famous for its mints. The company, now known as Trebor Bassett, is Britain's largest sweets maker.

To mark all these corporate changes, Jelly babies were given a more streetwise look in 1989. Each of the six "babies" was given a name and an identity as well as a colour. There is now pink baby Bonny, who wears a nappy and frilly bonnet, and the rather nauseatingly named Boofuls, the blue baby, who is always crying.

Bumper, the green clumsy one, is a haphazard shape, arms and legs akimbo, and wears a bum-bag (fanny pack to those from across the Atlantic). Bubbles, a female, sports a pony tail and is coloured yellow. The remaining two are Big Heart, who is grey and wears trainers, and Brilliant, the leader of the gang, who is red and wears green baseball boots.

Adults are not averse to jelly babies - perhaps they evoke memories of childhood. Research found that women who had children were more inclined to bite the heads off first, while those who were childless ate them whole. No great psychological conclusions have been drawn from this.

In blindfold tests, the most popular flavour was strawberry, followed by lime, blackcurrant, lemon, raspberry, and orange.

Three million Jelly Babies are eaten each weekmade by numerous manufacturers. They are permanently in the sweets Top 20, with sales worth 14 million pounds a year.

Made even more famous by televison's Dr Who who was seen a number of times tucking into his favourite sweet snack, Jelly Babies.

Jelly beans or jelly eggs are a type of confectionery that comes in many different (primarily fruit) flavors. They are small (the size of a red kidney bean or smaller) and usually have a hard candy shell and gummy interior. The confection is primarily made of sugar.

See our article on Jelly Belly's Official 50 Jelly Bean Flavors

Tiny sugar encrusted jelly sweets with fruit flavours - kids love them!

Jerky is meat which has been cut into strips with the fat trimmed off, marinated in a spiced, salty or sweet liquid for a desired flavor, then dried with low heat (usually under 160°F or 70°C) or occasionally salted and sun-dried.

The result is a salty, stripped, semi-sweet snack which can be stored for long periods of time without refrigeration. Jerky is one of humankind's earliest applications of food.

Traditional beef jerky, made from sliced, whole-muscle meat, is readily available in the United States and Canada in varying brands and qualities, both as packaged and unpackaged. These products are available in nearly every convenience store, gas station, supermarket and variety shop in those countries.

A similar product is made from highly processed and formed meat paste, and is often labeled as "Beef Jerky". This artificial product is also widely available, and generally much cheaper, in general interest stores such as supermarkets and convenience stores.

Also popular is shredded beef jerky sold in containers resembling snuff or dip. Beef jerky made in the traditional style is also a ubiquitous staple of farmers' markets in rural areas all over North America.

In addition to being quite common in the United States and Canada, jerky is also gaining popularity in supermarkets, convenience stores and pubs of several European countries.

A similar product (biltong) is common in South African cuisine; however, it differs very much in production process and taste.

Since 1996, beef jerky has been selected by astronauts several times for space flight due to its light weight and high level of nutrition.

Many other meats have become more commonly used for jerky, such as turkey, ostrich, salmon, alligator, and tuna.

The jerky can also be produced in a variety of flavours including:

Natural beef jerky
Black pepper beef jerky
Hot beef jerky
Sweet & spicy beef jerky
Teriyaki beef jerky

Why not find out more in our article all about The History of Jerky.

Juicy Fruit from Wrigley's is the numner one fruit gum brand in the U.S., and is the number one chewing gum with kids.

Juicy Fruit is also a popular chewing gum brand in Canada, Germany, Thailand, Malaysia, China and Hong Kong.

Chewy, fruit candy. A movie goers treat for decades.

The candy many have enjoyed inside movie theaters and out is now available in sour flavors.

Junior Caramels are a rich blend of Milk Chocolate and soft, easy to chew caramel. Bite sized caramel centers are covered with just the right amount of chocolate and are ideal for snacking and sharing with friends of all ages.

Junior Mints are a candy currently produced by Tootsie Roll Industries.

They are small rounds of mint cream filling in dark chocolate coating, sold packaged in a single-serving box.

Junior Mints were created in the mid-1940s by the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based James O. Welch Co.

The name supposedly came from the Sally Benson stories in The New Yorker that were collected into a book Junior Miss, made into a theatrical play, and then a radio show starring Shirley Temple. In 1963, the brand was acquired by Nabisco, who later sold the brand to Warner-Lambert Company (now part of Pfizer), who in turn sold the brand to Tootsie Roll in 1993.

Today Junior Mints are still manufactured in Cambridge.

Junior Mints are sold in many venues, but are particularly popular in movie theatres.

A cool classic takes a dip in a smooth refreshing white topping! Enjoy dark mint centers dipped in a smooth white coating for a real Junior Mint "Inside Out" experience. The best of both worlds!