Americans are known to love ice cream as much as they love coffee. About 40% of Americans will indulge in this treat at least once every two weeks, which is just below coffee consumption (47%). Although I love visiting the popsicle store near me, it would be fun to find out a few fun facts about this frozen treat you might not know.
- Ice cream on a stick was discovered by a kid, by accident: As one of the best ice cream type around, this treat was unintentionally discovered by an 11-year-old when he stirred soda mix in a cup of water with a stick and accidentally left it out on the porch overnight. In the morning, Epperson (the boy’s name) found a delicious treat waiting for him complete with a handle.
- They could have been named Epsicles: After that night, Epperson continued to make the late-night ice cream treats for his friends and family but only thought about filing a patent during the 1920s. He wanted to call the frozen treats Epsicles which is a combination of his name “icecles” but his friends convinced him to file the popsicles instead.
- They were first made in test tubes: When you look at the original patent for popsicles, you notice that the molds are pretty different from what we have today. Epperson used test tubes which gave the pops a smooth polished interior and made removing the treats easier and ensured a uniform size. The popsicle store near me uses the factory pops, but I experiment with silicon molds at home to make the treats for my kids an family.
- Popsicles made it to the Guinness book of records: The popsicle store near me may serve the delicious treat, but not as big as the one in the Guinness book of records that was first erected by a Dutch in 1997. The popsicle stood tall at 21-feet. In 2005, Snapple tried to break the record by erecting a 25-foot popsicle in New York City, but the frozen strawberry mess melted faster than expected leave the Dutch record intact.
- The sales are over the roof: Just like me, popsicles are moved by Americans, which puts the company’s profits into billions. According to the company, they supply more than one million pops a year and which makes them at least two billion every year. The Popsicle company claims that cherry is the most loved flavor. I wouldn’t be surprised if you ordered a strawberry paleta which is also a favorite Mexican flavor.
- Regionalism abounds: Popsicle is a registered brand which means all other generic brands have to find a different name for their brands. Mexican popsicles will be called paletas, while other American companies call them ice pops. In Britain, they are called ice lollies while Australian and New Zealand call them icy poles. I try to remember this whenever I visit a popsicle store near me, but I have to admit, the name popsicle is stuck.
- Served in seven flavors: When popsicles started being produced commercially, they only came in seven flavors. These are root beer, cherry, lemon, banana, orange, watermelon, and grape. Although there is no official record of the flavors Epperson preferred to served, it is believed that he serves flavors that came in soda mix. You will find an array of variety in today’s popsicle store with dozens of flavors to choose from such as avocado, lime mojito, plum and wine, blueberry and Pina colada pops.
- They have a national day: No summer is complete without popsicles and they fame has earned them a nations popsicle day dapped National Cherry popsicle day. This day, August 26th is marked by celebrating Americans favorite flavor, a cherry pop. Some companies share a twin pop on this day as they walk down memory lane to remind Americans the rich history pops have. Pops were first introduced to the world in Oakland during a ball and were first marked as a frozen drink on a stick.
As you enjoy your next ice pop this summer, you might be fascinated to know that they were used by the air force as a national symbol if America and American life during the second world war.