GREGG TOWNSHIP -- Sweet treats are a big part of the holiday season and perhaps nothing says Christmas quite like a candy cane.
A candy store in Union County makes all of its candy canes by hand and we stopped in to see how it's done.
There are lots of sweet treats at Purity Candy near Allenwood, but some of the store's biggest sellers are candy canes.
"We usually have about 11 flavors, but we can do all kinds of specialty flavors," explained Purity Candy president John Burfeindt.
These aren't the normal candy canes you see at the grocery stores. Purity Candy makes all of its candy canes by hand.
Burfeindt and his employees have been making candy canes for many years and sell thousands of them. We watched them make wintergreen flavored canes.
"I probably make 50 batches of just the candy canes and another 100 batches of different other hard candy things that we do," he said.
The process is time-consuming, but if you don't pay close attention to what you're doing it won't work. Once the candy gets to a certain temperature, you have to make the candy canes pretty quickly.
There is a window where people can watch the employees make the candy canes.
A few years ago, Betsy Schneider of Muncy brought her grandson.
"He got to see how the candy canes were made and they gave him a candy cane to make. They take them home. It was really a nice experience," Schneider recalled.
With 11 flavors to pick from, how do people decide what kind to buy?
"The cinnamon, the cinnamon's the best," said Lou Hunsinger. "Absolutely."
"I like them all," said Schneider. "There's really no favorite."
After all of the candy canes are made for Christmas, Burfeindt says he and his employees do not get a break. Valentine's Day is right around the corner, and that means around 10,000 heart pops!
