Canada vs. USA: The Candy Wars

As you all know, I've been hooked on PEZ recently. I did some research on the company which turns out originated from Austria. When I found the refills at Toys R Us last week, I noticed that the candy was still made in Austria.

Well today my mother made a trip to Seattle. While there, she stopped at a Walmart and picked me up some PEZ refills. They only cost $1 USD for a pack of 10 compared to $3 CAD for a pack of 8 at TRU. When she handed them to me later in the day, I noticed that the packaging was different from the kind I had found at my local Canadian Toys R Us. It was more plain. Turns out the ones from the States were made in California, NOT Austria.

Upon a taste test, it turns out that the ones made in the US had a sweeter taste; the artificial flavors were more apparent. How strange that Canada would not import the American made PEZ but opt to import the traditional Austrian made variety, probably at a more significant cost. I'm glad they do this because I prefer the Austrian-made PEZ.

On a related note, I was listening to the Dawn & Drew show and they made mention that someone in the UK had sent them a dozen Kinder Surprises. Apparently these are not available in the States! This is surprising because they are readily available in Canada. If D&D had not mentioned this fact, I would have never known that American children were deprived of the ability to eat a chocolate egg filled with a toy.

I'm happy to be Canadian. Besides all the political reasons for why I love Canada, a new reason is added to the pile: Canada gets candy that's not available in America!