Fruit Gushers

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Fruit Gushers
Betty Crocker Fruit Gushers pieces (cropped).jpg
Fruit Gushers (2017)
Alternative namesGushers
Type Fruit snack
Created by Karl Ulrich and Betty Crocker
Invented1991
Food energy
(per 28 g serving)
90  kcal (380  kJ) [1]

Fruit Gushers (also simply Gushers) are a Betty Crocker-branded fruit snack introduced in 1991. They are described as soft and chewy with a fruity-juice center.

Contents

History

Fruit Gushers (sometimes simply "Gushers") were introduced in 1991 [1] as a Betty Crocker fruit snack. [2] Each box of Fruit Gushers was list priced at US$2.19(equivalent to $5.06 in 2024) and contained six pouches of Gushers, each of which had nine individual pieces for 90 calories (380 kJ) per pouch. [1]

Composition

Strawberry-flavored Fruit Gushers are composed of sugar, dried corn syrup, corn syrup, modified corn starch, fructose, pear concentrate, and grape juice concentrate. [3] [4] Targeted at children, they were acorn-shaped with a soft "licorice-like" exterior and a liquid inside, included "strawberries and pear puree concentrate", and came in two flavors: "Strawberry Splash" and "Gushin' Grape". [1]

In 2003, one serving of any Fruit Gushers variety was one 0.9-ounce (26 g) package with 90 calories, zero protein, one gram (0.035 oz) of fat, and 20 grams (0.71 oz) of carbohydrates. [5] In 2018, 90 calories worth of Strawberry Fruit Gushers weighed 28 grams (0.99 oz) and contained nine grams (0.32 oz) of sugar, one gram of fat, and cost $0.46(equivalent to $0.58 in 2024). [3] Prior to 2025, the serving size was reduced to 0.8 ounces (23 g), 80 calories, and contained ten grams (0.35 oz) of sugar. [4]

Varieties

Betty Crocker released a new variety of Fruit Gushers in early 2020: "Galactic Fruit Gushers". These featured the flavors "Asteroid Apple", "Berry Star Cluster", and a mystery flavor labeled "Unidentified Flavored Object"; the latter was part of a contest where consumers could guess at the unknown flavor and win prizes "like sweatshirts, hats, blankets, pop sockets, and more". Galactic Fruit Gushers were sold through Walmart.com for $5.88(equivalent to $7.14 in 2024). [6]

In June 2024, the brand announced that its most-popular flavor, watermelon (previously available from 1997–2013), was returning to store shelves to meet consumer demands; combined with sour-apple flavored Gushers, boxes of six sachets were to be sold for $6.49, while boxes of ten sachets would sell for $10.29. [7]

Reception

A 1991 Sun-Sentinel review said that the insides oozed rather than gushed, and found the confectionery surprisingly pleasant. [1] In 2013, Complex magazine ranked Fruit Gushers the second-best fruit snack of all time, coming in behind another Betty Crocker product, Shark Bites. [2]

In September 2023, police in St. Marys, Kansas reported seizing fruit snacks and gummies, laced with tetrahydrocannabinol, being packaged as real commercial brands thereof—including Fruit Gushers. [8]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Noding, Jodi (December 19, 1991). "Kids' Snack Gushes with Fruit Flavor" . Sun-Sentinel . ISSN   0744-8139. Archived from the original on March 30, 2019. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  2. 1 2 Castro, Vanessa (July 25, 2013). "The 25 Greatest Fruit Snacks of All Time". Complex . Archived from the original on February 14, 2019. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  3. 1 2 Provenza, Fred (November 2018). "More Than One Kind of Memory". Nourishment: What Animals Can Teach Us About Rediscovering Our Nutritional Wisdom. White River Junction, Vermont: Chelsea Green Publishing. pp. 72–82. ISBN   9781603588027. LCCN   2018028053.
  4. 1 2 "Fruit Gushers". Open Food Facts . October 4, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2025.
  5. ↑ Natow, Annette B.; Heslin, Jo-Ann (February 2003) [1997]. "Brand Name, Nonbranded (Generic) & Take-Out Foods". The Protein Counter (2nd ed.). 1230 Avenue of the Americas: Pocket Books. p. 205. ISBN   0-7434-6434-6.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  6. ↑ Miller, Korin (January 14, 2020). "Gushers Has Limited-Edition Space Flavors Including A Delicious Mystery Gummy". Delish . Archived from the original on May 9, 2020. Retrieved May 9, 2020. It's multiple choice!
  7. ↑ Parker, Liz (June 14, 2024). "Gushers returns Watermelon flavor to shelves". Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery. ISSN   2329-1680. Archived from the original on August 11, 2024. Retrieved August 13, 2024. The brand is rereleasing the flavor due to fan requests.
  8. ↑ Motter, Sarah (September 19, 2023). "Parents warned to keep an eye on children's snacks as THC gummies seized". St. Marys, Kansas: WIBW-TV. Archived from the original on February 26, 2024. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
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