It’s bigger! It’s juicer! It’s Nerds’ new Juicy Gummy Clusters!
Ferrara announced in September that Nerds Juicy Gummy Clusters have hit store shelves. The new candy — made in Forest Park at 7301 W. Harrison St. — is similar to Nerds Gummy Clusters, with hard Nerds candy surrounding a gummy center, but this version is twice as big and has a drop of juice in the middle.
The launch of Juicy Gummy Clusters is Nerds’ largest since standard Gummy Clusters came out in 2020, according to Michael Butler, a Nerds brand manager at Ferrara Candy Company.
“After five years of the original Nerds Gummy Clusters candy becoming a top-seller in the sugar confections category, we saw an opportunity to take that success to the next level with a bold new twist that amplifies the multisensorial experience fans know and love,” Butler told the Review. “It really is a product that plays into all the senses. It’s mega, crunchy, gummy, and now, juicy.”
When Nerds developed the Gummy Cluster over five years ago, it wasn’t necessarily a walk in the park to create the candy.
“It is a more complex product,” a senior plant director at Ferrara previously told the Review. “It’s not as simple as some other gummies because it requires the Nerds to fuse with the gummies.”
Butler said creating Juicy Gummy Clusters had its own difficulties.
“Scaling up the candy and adding a juicy center introduced new challenges, especially in maintaining the right texture and flavor balance,” Butler said. “Ferrara’s technical teams worked in partnership with our Forest Park factory team to ensure the juice complemented, rather than overwhelmed, the candy.”
Currently, Juicy Gummy Clusters only come in one flavor: Bold Strawberry Punch. They can be found at Target and Walmart and are rolling out to other retailers nationwide. There will be 2.65-ounce, 4.5-ounce and 7.15-ounce packages with a suggested retail price between $2.49 and $6.49.
Ferrara Candy Company, with its factory in Forest Park, bought Nerds in 2018, when it was a $50 million brand. Last year, Nerds did $850 million in sales.
“Five years ago, Nerds transformed the candy landscape with the launch of Nerds Gummy Clusters candy,” said Katie Duffy, vice president of global brands at Ferrara, in a statement announcing Juicy Gummy Clusters. “And now, we’re raising the bar again.”