# Necco may soon shut down **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 14, 2018, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431 "2018-04-14T22:46:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![boffking](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/858c86/32.png) [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2018, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/1 "2018-04-14T22:46:08Z")
> **[If you're a Necco Wafers fan, you may want to stock up](https://www.simplemost.com/necco-wafers-candy-factory-close/)** > > Necco Wafers have been a classic candy staple since their invention in 1847. They were even distributed to soldiers during World War II because the candies are so durable! You may remember Necco... If they don’t find a buyer for the factory before May 6th, it will shut down. I wasn’t really a wafer fan, but I really liked their Skybars. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2018, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/2 "2018-04-14T23:31:44Z")
I love the wafers. They’ve been hard to find for at least a decade. Kmart always had them. But, finding a Kmart, is difficult now. I preferred sorting mine and bagging by flavor. So I could pop three yellows in my mouth. Get more flavor that way. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2018, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/3 "2018-04-14T23:42:50Z")
Hopefully the makers of circus peanuts will join them soon. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2018, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/4 "2018-04-15T00:03:05Z")
Oh, good. Now I can come out with Neko Wafers and not risk being sued. (Note: Neko Wafers are not happening, but goddammit, I wanna.) ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2018, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/5 "2018-04-15T00:07:08Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I love the wafers. They’ve been hard to find for at least a decade. Kmart always had them. But, finding a Kmart, is difficult now. > > I preferred sorting mine and bagging by flavor. So I could pop three yellows in my mouth. Get more flavor that way. I love the wafers too but I’ve never had a problem finding them. Maybe it’s a regional thing. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2018, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/6 "2018-04-15T00:39:37Z")
> [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > Oh, good. Now I can come out with Neko Wafers and not risk being sued. > > (Note: Neko Wafers are not happening, but goddammit, I wanna.) [Neko Case answers questions about Necco Wafers](https://youtu.be/Wu9FmHzDpOM?t=5m01s) ---
**Author:** ![jaycat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat/32/3015_2.png) [@jaycat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jaycat)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2018, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/7 "2018-04-15T02:30:16Z")
In the old days they were made in Cambridge (Mass.) Driving thru Central Square at times, the sweet smell was overpowering (though sort of yummy). ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2018, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/8 "2018-04-15T03:04:17Z")
It would also mean the end of the traditional Valentine’s Day Sweethearts. Sure, there are superior imitations, but it’s just not the same. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2018, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/9 "2018-04-15T03:11:27Z")
I may have to stock up. You can get mass quantities of them from Amazon. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2018, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/10 "2018-04-15T03:38:02Z")
My teeth hurt just reading the title of this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/11 "2018-04-16T03:25:20Z")
> [@jaycat](#): > > In the old days they were made in Cambridge (Mass.) Driving thru Central Square at times, the sweet smell was overpowering (though sort of yummy). Just down the street from MIT. Passed it many times. When I went back for my reunion the building seems to be a research mall or something. ---
**Author:** ![Grumbacher\_Red](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85e7bf/32.png) [@Grumbacher\_Red](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumbacher_Red)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/12 "2018-04-16T03:33:15Z")
Necco wafers are nasty. I won’t miss them. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/13 "2018-04-16T04:21:49Z")
Eh. Thin sliced sidewalk chalk. But not even good for artists. ---
**Author:** ![pdhenry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pdhenry/32/5561_2.png) [@pdhenry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pdhenry)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/14 "2018-04-16T04:54:26Z")
Doller Tree (Where there are signs that say “Everything $1.00") has Necco Wafers for 89 cents. Go figure. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/15 "2018-04-16T05:58:01Z")
> [@pdhenry](#): > > Doller Tree (Where there are signs that say “Everything $1.00") has Necco Wafers for 89 cents. Go figure. You should know you’re in trouble when your product is in the discount bin at the dollar store. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/16 "2018-04-16T06:34:50Z")
When are Candy Corns going to go? Uggh, those are the nastiest of the nasty. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/17 "2018-04-16T07:28:27Z")
Necco wafers, circus peanuts, and candy corn are the trifecta of confectionary horror. Even as a young child with an undiscriminating sweet tooth, I thought they were inedible. The only Necco wafers that didn’t taste like talc were the licorice ones, and they tasted like a homeopathic concoction of talc with 1 part anise per billion. But yes, I remember when the wafer factor was near MIT, and it did smell sort of nice. It was part of the charm of walking around the area. . ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/18 "2018-04-16T07:32:40Z")
Aside from Necco Wafers, NECCO also makes Clark Bars and Haviland Thin Mints. I believe those are far better regarded than the divisive Necco Wafers but I could be wrong. What’s the consensus here about those two candies? ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/19 "2018-04-16T08:21:27Z")
I adore necco wafers. I am indifferent to the mints, which taste much like other mints. I don’t care for Clark bars, nor for skybars. Circus peanuts are disgusting. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431/20 "2018-04-16T12:14:05Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > Just down the street from MIT. Passed it many times. When I went back for my reunion the building seems to be a research mall or something. NECCO hasn’t been in the building a couple of blocks up from MIT in ages. They sold it to high tech firms and moved to a building on Revere Beach Parkway in Revere, which is where they’ve been operating.\* I don’t know what the fuss is – the company actually sold their operations to other candy companies over a year ago. They’ve been planning to leave that facility since that time. My guess is that NECCO wafers and Conversation Hearts will continue to be produced at other facilities. I know that the NECCO executive offices have been closed for months – I tried for a long time to reach them in order to research a book about the company, and NOBODY ANSWERED THE PHONE – except for the custodian at the front desk. There have been multiple stories in the paper about how the factory was going to be turned into some high tech business. Nevertheless, there’s a sign out front of the Revere Beach parkway entrance calling for factory shift workers. It looks as if they want to maintain the appearance of being an open, functioning factory, while they’ve taken all the steps to shut the place down and sell it to some high tech business. Beats me why they’re doing that. \*KInda bad, in a way. Somebody finally got the bright idea to paint the water tower so that it looked like a pack of NECCCO wafers just before they moved. “NECCO”, by the way, stands for New England Confectionary COmpany. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/necco-may-soon-shut-down/812431.md?page=2)