Dear readers,
For the final review of this jelly bean season, I had intended to review Jelly Belly’s take on pectin jelly Beans, but just this morning a reader brought something to my attention: the chairman of the Jelly Belly Candy Company, Herman G Rowland Sr., donated to a 2013 effort to advance a California referendum that would roll back rights that had been statutorily granted to transgender students in the state. For more details, see the original report at the Huffington Post. As far as I can see, Jelly Belly has never made a public comment on the matter, and he continues to be employed as the chairman to this day.
I don’t know how this escaped my attention for the eight years I have been reviewing jelly beans on this site, but now that I know, I will no longer purchase or review their products.
Some people reading this might be thinking something like, “Seriously? There’s probably a Milkshake Duck at every company whose products you buy. If you cancel them all, you’d never buy anything.” While that may be true, we are imperfect humans, living our lives with imperfect information. All we can do is take the information we get, whenever it comes to us, and make decisions that align with our values. I value my transgender friends and what they have taught me about life, and this choice is about no longer indirectly supporting a man who has directly been working to take away their rights to live their lives as their authentic selves.
Besides, there are plenty of other great jelly beans in the world, most of which cost far less than Jelly Belly. Here are some of my top recommendations:
- Trader Joe’s and Aldi (30 out of 35 beans)
- SweeTarts (29 out of 30 beans)
- Gimbal’s, Trolli Sour Brite Eggs, and Dunkin’ (28 out of 30 beans)
- Nerds, Starburst, and Just Born (27 out of 30 beans)
I still hope to someday deliver the much-requested, long-promised ability to sort the reviews here by their scores, but that should do for now.
Speaking of the future…
This would have been the final review of our eighth season here at A Boy and His Beans. Unfortunately, it also marks the final full season of reviews. The backlog has run dry, and if recent trends continue, there will only be one or two new releases at most in a given year. I will almost certainly continue to review those one or two each year, but the days of full seasons averaging over ten reviews each are sadly over.
Whether you’re a new reader or have been with me from the beginning, thank you for spending your time with me on this journey, and I hope I’ve helped each one of you find your new favorite jelly bean.
See you (at least once or twice) next year!
–Scott