Freeze-dried candy produced with upcycled ingredients is making waves in the confectionery industry, with companies such as Sow Good paving the way. Born in the Southwest, Claudia Goldfarb launched Sow Good from Texas. Today, they’re leading the confection revolution by applying the potato chip process to candies, creating new crunchy sweets with bold flavors. So now the freeze-dried candy market is primed to burst! It’s expected to increase from $1.3 billion in 2024 to a truly mind-boggling $3.1 billion in 2034. And the biggest players in the industry—Hershey, Mars, and Ferrara—all of whom are in on the boom. In fact, in response, they have only recently launched their own freeze-dried production lines.
Goldfarb describes the freeze-drying process as “creating our own weather system in these massive chambers.” This process not only draws the moisture out of the candy’s surface, it gives the product an appearance of vivid colors and an unmistakable melt-in-your mouth texture. That mindblowingly good flavor is one of the biggest draws of freeze dried candy. Goldfarb details how the process intensifies sweet and sour flavors. This change in kombucha makes it a very attractive possibility for consumers who want to experiment and try different things.
Our entrepreneur’s introduction to freeze-dried candy started when Savannah Louise West was first introduced to freeze-dried gummies. In part, her curiosity drew her in to learn about the texture and flavor variety available in edibles as compared with traditional gummies. She remarked, “I think the crunch is so satisfying, and I find it interesting to experience a candy I’m familiar with that has an entirely new texture.” She cautioned about the fragility of these sweet confections, telling us that they always seem to be broken in the bag.
Rich Hartel, a professor of food engineering at University of Wisconsin-Madison. In addition to teaching the science of candy, he’s hands-on in monitoring the effects freeze-drying has on candy products. He points out that the majority of candies have little to no freezable water in them, making it difficult to implement in a wide variety. Hartel emphasizes that freeze-dried candy usually looks puffed up with big holes. This singular candy making process makes every chewy treat instantly fun to munch!
“When the candies dry, the air bubbles cause an expansion, which is why you see gummies turn from soft to hard,” – Rich Hartel.
Hartel remains skeptical about freeze-dried candy’s success moving forward, despite the excitement in the space. He’s concerned that indie businesses would have a hard time going up against big brands who flood the market.
As Goldfarb looks toward the future—for her company and the industry in general—she’s feeling pretty optimistic. She believes that innovation is crucial for success and that smaller companies can carve out their niche by continuing to develop new products. “People want innovation in candy, and they want to try something fun and novel,” she asserts.
Market analysts and entrepreneurs such as Zachry Barlett lament this trend towards convenience on the consumer side. He notes of their core demographic — their largest audience — being the youth market, specifically ages 18 through 45. Influencing these young minds are the social media platforms like TikTok. “Our customer demographic is mainly under 45 as they’ve likely heard about this type of candy on TikTok or other social platforms, and wanted to try something that is going viral,” Barlett explains.
Some of the bigger companies are starting to get into freeze-dried candy as well. This has created fears that independent businesses will no longer be able to maintain their market share. Hartel warns that many would view this trend as a short-term, whimsical and creative fad. Customers returning to a very soft, chewy candy after trying the amazing textures of freeze-dried options will be hard pressed to return.
“Will just be a fad, but you never know if long-time customers will continue to come back to a type of sweet they didn’t really enjoy when it was chewy.” – Rich Hartel.
Goldfarb’s vision for Sow Good takes those assumptions and flips them, leading to a culture of constant innovation and a focus on quality. She’s confident that the technology for freeze-drying will become widely accessible soon. As the program matures, more new entrants will be able to enter the market. “People have long eaten freeze-dried fruit, and it’s an industry where it can be accessible for anyone to enter as large freeze dryers have dropped in price,” Hartel says.