Necco candies in short supply, for now, after failure

If the world isn’t already in enough flux, consider this sad fact: For the first time, Halloween trick-or-treaters may have a hard time getting their hands on Clark Bars or Mary Janes this year.

New England Confection- ery Company (Necco), the Massachusetts-based candy manufacturer behind a slew of iconic brands dating to the 19th century, shut down after filing for bankruptcy. The good news for patient fans is that Clark Bars and Mary Janes, as well as the popular Sweethearts, will return over the next two years under dif- ferent companies. But how America’s oldest candy man- ufacturer reached this end shows again the difficulty of sustaining a popular con- sumer brand.

The tale contains familiar ingredients: Bad management. Excessive debt. Chang- ing tastes. And bankruptcy after a decade of ownership under private equity owners including Ares Management. Add in one more stom- ach-churning item — hordes of rats on the factory floor.

“Everyone saw it coming, it was just a matter of when and how,” said Jim Green- berg, co-president of Union Confectionery Machinery, whose family business supplied machinery to Necco for almost a century.

Necco largely founded the candy industry in the U.S. in 1847 when a pharmacist named Oliver Chase built a little machine that would crank out lozenges. That gave birth to the thin and multicolored Necco Wafers whose recipe and flavoring remain the same today, for better or worse. Soon came Sweethearts — stamped with messages like “Be Mine,” “Miss You,” and “Love Me.”

Necco mostly thrived over the next 150 years, building or acquiring other best-selling brands. The decline started around 2003 when management built a $130 million, 825,000-square-foot plant in Revere, Massachusetts. It ended up being too big.

Spangler Candy Co. plans to relaunch Necco wafers and Sweethearts next year, according to a company statement. Boyer Candy plans to resume production of the Clark Bar in the next six months, the Associated Press reports.