Confectionaries

Confectionaries, or confectionery products and shops, refer to foods and commercial outlets that produce and sell sweets. The term encompasses a broad range of items, including candies, chocolates, gums, jellies, fondants, caramels, nougat, marzipan, and pastilles, as well as related baked or decorative confections.

Main categories include sugar confections (hard candies, chews, toffees, fudges, and taffy), chocolate products (bags of pralines, bars, and truffles), gum and mint products, and pastry-based confections (sweet pastries, fillings, and decorative candies). Many confectionaries also offer sugar-free or reduced-sugar options using alternative sweeteners.

Common ingredients are sugars or syrups, fats and dairy, flavorings, colorings, and stabilizers. Production methods vary: sugar syrups are boiled and crystallized for hard candies or pulled for taffy; caramelization and boiling create caramels and toffees; chocolate is tempered and enrobed or molded; confectioneries may be molded, enrobed, filled, or dusted with coatings.

Confectionery has long historical roots in ancient civilizations with sugar refining expanding through the Middle Ages and into early modern Europe, where artisans and later factories began mass production. The modern confectionery industry is global, with regional specialties such as British toffees and boiled sweets, Belgian and Swiss chocolates, Italian nougat, Turkish delight, and Japanese wagashi.

Regulation focuses on food safety, labeling, allergen information, and packaging. Ethical and sustainability concerns have grown, including cacao supply chain transparency and labor practices. Confectioneries are linked to festivals, holidays, and everyday snacking, reflecting cultural preferences and innovations in flavor and form.