Clark Bar

Last updated
Clark Bar
Candy-Clark-Bar-Wrapper-Small.jpg
Candy-Clark-Bar-Broken.jpg
A Clark Bar, broken in half.
Product type Candy bar
Owner Boyer
Country United States
Introduced1917;107 years ago (1917)
Related brands Zagnut
MarketsNorth America
Previous owners

The Clark Bar is a candy bar consisting of a crispy peanut butter/spun taffy core (originally with a caramel center) and coated in milk chocolate. It was introduced in 1917 by David L. Clark and was popular during and after both World Wars. It was the first American "combination" candy bar to achieve nationwide success. Two similar candy bars followed the Clark Bar, the Butterfinger bar (1923) made by the Curtiss Candy Company and the 5th Avenue bar (1936) created by Luden's.

Contents

The Clark Bar was manufactured in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, by the original family-owned business until 1955. It was then manufactured by corporate owners until a series of sales and bankruptcies in the 1990s resulted in transfer of production to the Revere, Massachusetts–based New England Confectionery Company (Necco). Following Necco's 2018 bankruptcy, the Clark Bar is now produced in western Pennsylvania, by the Altoona-based Boyer Candy Company.

History

The original formula of the Clark Bar was pioneered by Irish immigrant David L. Clark in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1917. Its manufacture took advantage of a recently-developed approach that allowed a thin milk chocolate shell to surround a non-chocolate filling. In the case of the Clark Bar, the interior consisted of a crispy confection that included ground peanuts around a caramel core. As such, the Clark Bar became the first successful 'combination' candy bar. [1] The bar was developed to be sent to troops during World War I, [2] individually wrapped for ease of delivery. [3] It began to be distributed nationally after the war's end, inspiring many manufacturers to produce their own combination bars. [4] The small size of its double-bars contributed to their popularity. [5] During World War II the company was sending daily 1.5 million bars to the armed forces, and when several labor strikes at its plant led to shortages among the troops, the federal government stepped in, calling production "essential" to the war effort. [6] Related products were also produced, such as the smaller-sized Clark Bar Miniatures, Clark Bar Bites and Clark Bar Juniors, [3] along with seasonal Clark Bar Easter Eggs, [7] and a dark chocolate variety.

The Clark Bar originally included a caramel 'center of attraction'. [8] In 1965, the recipe was changed to increase the peanut butter content and thus enhance flavor. [9] The caramel center would be removed from the recipe in the 1980s to increase its shelf-life. [8] In 1995, an alternative recipe would briefly be used. [10]

Ownership changes

From 1911, the Clark company operated out of a North Side production facility, and this was long where the Clark Bar was produced. The illuminated oversized roof-top Clark Bar sign that decorated the original North Side factory would become a Pittsburgh landmark, [11] while a restaurant that operates in the retasked building is named the Clark Bar & Grill in reflection of the treat once made there. [12]

The D. L. Clark Co. and its Clark Bar were acquired by Beatrice Foods in 1955, then sold to Leaf Candy Company in 1983. It was under Leaf that production was moved to a new facility in O'Hara Township (suburban Pittsburgh) in 1986. In late 1990, Leaf announced plans to close its O'Hara facility and move production of two other D. L. Clark candy bars, the Zagnut and P. B. Crunchers, to the Chicago area. They decided to cease production of the other Clark products, including the Clark Bar, for which their marketing efforts had failed to achieve a national profile. [13] [14] [15]

Pittsburgh-area entrepreneur Michael Carlow purchased D. L. Clark Co. and its remaining brands from Leaf, and combined it with another struggling but iconic local producer, the Pittsburgh Brewing Company and its Iron City beer, as well as a local bakery and a glass manufacturer, plus the Fort Wayne, Indiana-based producer of Bun Bars under the umbrella of the Pittsburgh Food & Beverage Company, continuing production of the Clark Bar in O'Hara. [16] However, amidst accusations of a check kiting scheme that would lead to Carlow's eventual imprisonment, [17] [18] he was forced to relinquish control in 1995, and production ceased. [16] [19] Leaf then foreclosed on a $3 million loan they were still owed, and commenced making Clark Bars at their Illinois facility with an altered recipe. Months later, Clark's assets were sold through bankruptcy court to the newly-formed Clark Bar America, Inc., which restarted production at the O'Hara facility using the prior recipe. [10] This was short-lived, and the company was shuttered in 1999. [6] The recipe and production equipment were bought at bankruptcy by Necco for $4.1 million, and they moved production to their facility in Revere, Massachusetts. [3]

Almost two decades later, Necco would in turn fail and in May 2018 was sold at bankruptcy court to Round Hill Investments LLC, who briefly operated the candy manufacturer under a Sweetheart Candy Co. subsidiary before selling the assets in July 2018 and abruptly closing Necco's Revere production facility. [20] The undisclosed buyer, later revealed to have been Spangler Candy Company, [21] would in turn sell the rights to the Clark Bar to the Boyer Candy Company, maker of the Mallo Cup. [22] Based in Altoona, Pennsylvania, they had originally bid on the Clark Bar in the 1990s. [23] At the time of purchase, Boyer planned to restart production of the Clark Bar in western Pennsylvania within six months. [22] Challenges with production machinery speed [24] and reproducing the bar's consistency and shape pushed back their reintroduction, but did provide the raw material for Boyer's first Clark-related product, the Clark Cup, a peanut butter cup that originally included ground misshapen Clark Bar in the filling. [25] Once Boyer resolved these production issues, the Clark Bar was available at the factory outlet in late December 2019, [26] and was released on a limited basis to stores in the Pittsburgh area in mid-February 2020, to be followed first by a full Pittsburgh release, and then sale nationwide, [27] [28] but as of December 2021, production was still limited, with distribution only to Pittsburgh-area specialty candy stores. [29]

In part due to its historical association with the military, the Clark Bar is the favorite snack of the eponymous lead in the Amazon Prime Video series, Reacher . [30]

Manufacturing process

As described during the period of Necco's ownership, the Clark Bar is produced by a process taking about 90 minutes. The core ingredients are heated into a taffy-like consistency and flattened into a sheet, which is then coated with a layer of peanut butter, and rolled. After cutting into bar-sized lengths, it is enrobed in liquid chocolate, cooled to harden both core and coating, then packaged. [31] The process of manufacturing the Clark Bar was featured on a segment of the documentary television series How It's Made in 2016. [32]

The ingredients for the Clark Bar are as follows: Milk Chocolate (Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Chocolate Liquor, Milk Powder, Butter Oil, Soy Lecithin, Vanilla Extract), Corn Syrup, Sugar, Peanuts, Molasses, Corn Flour, Invert Sugar, Salt, Coconut Oil, Vanilla Extract, and Soy Lecithin. [33]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Hershey Company</span> American food company

The Hershey Company, often called just Hershey or Hershey's, is an American multinational confectionery company headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania, United States, which is also home to Hersheypark and Hershey's Chocolate World. The Hershey Company is one of the largest chocolate manufacturers in the world; it also manufactures baked products, such as cookies and cakes, and sells beverages like milkshakes, as well as other products. The Hershey Company was founded by Milton S. Hershey in 1894 as the Hershey Chocolate Company, originally established as a subsidiary of his Lancaster Caramel Company. The Hershey Trust Company owns a minority stake but retains a majority of the voting power within the company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Planters</span> Snack food brand specializing in peanuts

Planters Nut & Chocolate Company is an American snack food company now owned by Hormel Foods. Planters is best known for its processed nuts and for the Mr. Peanut icon that symbolizes them. Mr. Peanut was created by grade schooler Antonio Gentile for a 1916 contest to design the company's brand icon. The design was modified by a commercial artist and has continued to change over the years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Necco Wafers</span> American candy

Necco Wafers are a sugar-based candy, sold in rolls of variously-flavored thin disks. First produced in 1847, they became the namesake and core product of the now-defunct New England Confectionery Company (Necco), which operated near Boston, Massachusetts. Production of the candy was suspended in July 2018 when Necco went into bankruptcy, but returned in May 2020 after purchase of the brand and production equipment by the Spangler Candy Company.

Butterfinger is a candy bar manufactured by the Ferrara Candy Company, a subsidiary of Ferrero. It consists of a layered crisp peanut butter core covered in a "chocolatey" coating. It was invented by Otto Schnering of the Curtiss Candy Company in 1923. The name was chosen by a popularity contest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peanut butter cup</span> Chocolate-coated peanut butter confection

A peanut butter cup is a molded chocolate with a peanut butter filling. Peanut butter cups are one of the most popular kinds of candy in America. They can be made at home, but like most candies, they are commonly mass-produced. They may also be available in candy shops, produced by local or regional candymakers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reese's Peanut Butter Cups</span> American candy made by Hersheys

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups are an American candy by The Hershey Company consisting of a peanut butter cup encased in chocolate. They were created on November 15, 1928, by H. B. Reese, a former dairy farmer and shipping foreman for Milton S. Hershey. Reese left his job with Hershey to start his own candy business. Reese's are a top-selling candy brand worldwide, with more than $2 billion in annual sales generated for The Hershey Company.

The 5th Avenue is a candy bar introduced in 1936, consisting of peanut butter crunch layers enrobed in chocolate. It is currently produced and marketed by The Hershey Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milk Duds</span> Brand of caramel and cocoa confectionery

Milk Duds are a brand of chocolate-coated caramel candies produced by The Hershey Company. The candy is a caramel disk covered with a confectionery chocolate coating made from cocoa and vegetable oil. Milk Duds are sold in a yellowish-orange box.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">H. B. Reese</span> American businessman and inventor

Harry Burnett Reese was an American inventor and businessman known for creating the number one-selling candy brand in the United States; Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, and founding the H. B. Reese Candy Company. In 2009, he was posthumously inducted into the Candy Hall of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Necco</span> Candy manufacturer

Necco was an American manufacturer of candy created in 1901 as the New England Confectionery Company through the merger of several small confectionery companies located in the Greater Boston area, with ancestral companies dating back to the 1840s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sky Bar</span> American candy bar

Sky Bar is an American candy bar introduced by Necco in 1938, discontinued in 2018, and reintroduced in 2019 by the Sky Bar Confectionary Company. Each Sky Bar has four sections, each with a different filling—caramel, vanilla, peanut, and fudge—all covered in milk chocolate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PayDay (confection)</span> Candy bar containing peanuts and caramel

PayDay is a brand of a candy bar first introduced in 1932 by the Hollywood Candy Company. The original PayDay candy bar consists of salted peanuts rolled over a nougat-like sweet caramel center. Since 1996, classic PayDay candy bars without chocolate have been continually produced by The Hershey Company. In 2020, Hershey's released a "Chocolatey PayDay bar" as a permanent part of the PayDay product line; it is identical to the regular bar, but covered by a layer of chocolate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boyer (candy company)</span> American company

Boyer Candy Company is an American candy company located in Altoona, Pennsylvania. The factory is located in the downtown district. Boyer Candy is privately owned by Consolidated Brands, which is owned by the Forgione family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whatchamacallit (candy)</span> Crisped rice candy bar

Whatchamacallit is a chocolate candy bar marketed in the United States by The Hershey Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">D. L. Clark Company</span> Confectionery manufacturer founded in 1886

The D. L. Clark Company was founded in 1886 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, now part of Pittsburgh, by David L. Clark (1864–1939), an Irish-born candy salesman. In 1921, Clark Brothers Chewing Gum Company was spun off as a separate corporation. In 1955, when the family-owned D. L. Clark company was sold to Beatrice Foods, they had production facilities in Pittsburgh and Evanston, Illinois. Beatrice sold it in 1983 to Leaf, and they in turn sold Clark in 1991, though Leaf retained the rights to Clark's Zagnut and P. C. Crunchers bars. The new owner, entrepreneur Michael P. Carlow, would operate it under the umbrella of the Pittsburgh Food & Beverage Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary Jane (candy)</span> Candy

Mary Jane is an old-fashioned peanut butter- and molasses-flavored taffy-type candy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bun Bars</span>

Bun Bars are a line of candy bars manufactured by Pearson's Candy Company of Saint Paul, Minnesota, and available in the United States. Despite the name, Bun Bars are not bars at all, but actually round and flat, containing a disc made of maple or vanilla-flavored crème, or caramel, coated in milk chocolate and topped with a roasted peanut-chocolate cluster.

The Pittsburgh Food & Beverage Company was a holding company created in 1991 by entrepreneur Michael P. Carlow to manage a pair of struggling but iconic companies in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Originally joining the candymaker D. L. Clark Co., maker of the Clark Bar, with the Pittsburgh Brewing Company and their Iron City Beer, it expanded to add further regional businesses: Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania's L. E. Smith Glass Company, the Fort Wayne, Indiana-based Wayne Candies, Inc., and Pittsburgh's City Pride Bakery. Its 1995 collapse in bankruptcy and the subsequent conviction of Carlow for using a check kiting scheme, said to have defrauded a local bank of more than $31 million, was reported nationally.

References

  1. ↑ Tim Richardson, A History of Candy, (Bloomsbury, 2002), p. 230
  2. ↑ Bruce Kraig, The Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America, 2nd ed. (Oxford University Press, 2012), vol. 1, p. 292
  3. 1 2 3 Lindeman, Teresa F (August 23, 2000). "They want, but can't find, a Clark Bar". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
  4. ↑ Andrew F. Smith, Food and Drink in American History: A "Full Course" Encyclopedia, (ABC-Cleo, 2013), vol. 1, pp. 141, 182
  5. ↑ Tim Richardson, A History of Candy, (Bloomsbury, 2002), p. 327
  6. 1 2 Silver, Jonathan D (May 2, 1999). "Billions of candy bars later, Clark quietly closes". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on November 15, 2018. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
  7. ↑ "Product News For Shoppers". Trenton Evening Times . May 5, 1959. p. 13.
  8. 1 2 "Clark brother laments candy changes". The Indiana Gazette . December 8, 1990. p. 6.
  9. ↑ "Clark Announces Flavor Increase". The Dallas Morning News . April 29, 1965. p. 22.
  10. 1 2 Cutter, Henry (June 16, 1995). "Candy Factory Celebrates Sweet Victory". AP. Archived from the original on September 27, 2022. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
  11. ↑ "D. L. Clark Company Papers and Photographs". Historic Pittsburgh.
  12. ↑ Eric Heyl (April 10, 2018). "Could Clark Bars Be Doomed?". Pittsburgh Patch. Retrieved August 5, 2018.
  13. ↑ "Clark bar up for grabs". The Hour . September 8, 1990. p. 2.
  14. ↑ "City push is on to keep Clark Candy here", Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pittsburgh, PA, p. 5, September 10, 1990
  15. ↑ Ranii, David (September 11, 1990), "RIDC stuck with Clark plant loans", Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, PA, p. 5
  16. 1 2 Smith, Lee; Eiben, Therese (July 10, 1995). "The Wrecking Crew Michael Carlow And His Dad Started Out Demolishing Old Factories -- Then Grew Rich Destroying Companies". Fortune Magazine. Archived from the original on July 25, 2018. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
  17. ↑ "Clark Bar moving to Massachusetts". The Indiana Gazette. 12 May 1999. p. 24.
  18. ↑ Reynolds, Dan (May 9, 2005). "Getting a second chance: After serving time for bank fraud, Michael Carlow finds consulting work". Pittsburgh Business Times.
  19. ↑ Kurt Eichenwald (April 12, 1995). "A City's Savior? Not Quite; Did Michael Carlow Rescue Pittsburgh Companies Only to Loot Them?". New York Times.
  20. ↑ Conti, Katheleen (July 24, 2018). "Necco candy factory shuts down abruptly after company is sold again". Boston Globe.
  21. ↑ Morgan, Richard (25 September 2018). "'Mystery buyer' of Necco wafers and Sweethearts revealed". New York Post. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  22. 1 2 "Clark Bar saved from extinction, returning to Pennsylvania". WTAE. AP. September 7, 2018. Retrieved September 7, 2018.
  23. ↑ Edgar B. Herwick III (December 5, 2018). "A Splintered NECCO Forges A Future Around The World, Just Not In Revere". WGBH News.
  24. ↑ Tascarella, Patty (October 18, 2019). "The wait's almost over —here's when Clark Bars return". Pittsburgh Business Times. Retrieved October 19, 2019. ("They were shooting five feet off the line — it was crazy to see.")
  25. ↑ Sabatini, Patricia (January 23, 2019). "Clark Bars aren't quite ready yet. Enter Clark Cups". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  26. ↑ Tascarella, Patty (December 26, 2019). "Where did the Clark Bar go? Get ready for a car trip". Pittsburgh Business Times. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  27. ↑ Tascarella, Patty (February 10, 2020). "Move over, Valentine's Day chocolates, Clark Bars are back". Pittsburgh Business Times. Retrieved February 11, 2020.
  28. ↑ Koscinski, Kiley (February 14, 2020). "Clark Bars Are Back In Pittsburgh, Just In Time For Valentine's Day". NPR's All Things Considered . Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  29. ↑ Kelly Sasso (December 8, 2021). "Ask Kelly: Why don't we see Clark Bars everywhere?". WTAE. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  30. ↑ Nate Powles (February 8, 2022). "Clark bar featured on new 'Reacher' Amazon series". Altoona Mirror. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  31. ↑ Steve Almond, Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America, (Algonquin Books, 2004), pp. 52-3
  32. ↑ "Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars". How It's Made . Series 27. Episode 4 (Segment B). 2016. Discovery Science . Retrieved 27 March 2020.
  33. ↑ Staff. "Mr. Ed's Elephant Museum and Candy Emporium - Clark Bar". Mr. Ed's Elephant Museum and Candy Emporium. Mr. Ed's Elephant Museum and Candy Emporium. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.