Every year around Easter, a divisive food takes over the United States. The country divides into two camps: those who eat Peeps, and those who don’t eat Peeps. But when Easter weekend is over and the Peeps numbers are counted, the former are clearly in the majority. More than 700 million Marshmallow Peeps are consumed every year in the United States (and you can bet the vast majority of those are being consumed in the month of April).
Listen Peeps (get it?), the little sugar covered marshmallows simply can’t be stopped. Despite having the consistency and feel of packing peanuts, Americans gobble them up like turkey on Thanksgiving.
Peeps used to be produced by Rodda Candy Company. Each little baby chicken marshmallow would be shaped by hand. In 1953, the candy manufacturer Just Born bought the company and made peeps available to the masses. And what a better world we live in because of it.
When the numbers are broken down, there are enough Peeps for every man, woman, and child in the United States to have 2.2 Peeps. Do your part Peeps lovers.