{{short description|Spun sugar confection}} {{About|the confection|other uses}} {{Redirect|Spun sugar|the racehorse|Spun Sugar}} {{Use mdy dates|date=December 2023}} {{Infobox food | name = Cotton candy | image = Cotton candy Μαλλί της γριάς.JPG | image_size = 250px | caption = Spinning cotton candy at a fair | alternate_name = Candy floss (candyfloss), fairy floss | country = | region = United States | creator = | course = | type = Confectionery | served = | main_ingredient = Sugar, food coloring | variations = | calories = | other = }}

'''Cotton candy''', also known as '''candy floss''' ('''candyfloss''') and '''fairy floss''', is a spun sugar confection that resembles cotton. It is made by heating and liquefying sugar, and spinning it centrifugally through minute holes, causing it to rapidly cool and re-solidify into fine strands.<ref name="physics">{{cite web | title =Food Science: Cotton Candy | publisher =Portageinc.com | url =http://www.portageinc.com/community/pp/cottoncandy.aspx | access-date =2014-07-28 | archive-date =2013-09-21 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20130921200826/http://www.portageinc.com/community/pp/cottoncandy.aspx | url-status =live }}</ref> It usually contains small amounts of food flavoring and it naturally bears the color of the sugar it is made of which is often altered with food coloring.<ref name="nyt15">{{cite news |last=Swarns |first=Rachel L. |date=July 27, 2014 |title=In Coney Island, Weaving a Confection That Tastes Like Long-Ago Summers |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/28/nyregion/in-coney-island-weaving-a-confection-that-tastes-like-long-ago-summers.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=March 1, 2017 |archive-date=February 10, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200210002254/https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/28/nyregion/in-coney-island-weaving-a-confection-that-tastes-like-long-ago-summers.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

It is often sold at fairs, circuses, carnivals, and festivals, served in a plastic bag, on a stick, or on a paper cone.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/best-of-worst-july-4th-foods/ |title=Best Of Worst -- July 4th Foods |publisher=cbsnews.com |date=July 1, 2008 |access-date=September 13, 2009 |quote=Cotton Candy (1.5 oz serving) 171 calories, 0&nbsp;g fat, 45&nbsp;g carbs, 45&nbsp;g sugar, 0&nbsp;g protein |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081005131351/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/07/01/earlyshow/health/main4222191.shtml |archive-date=October 5, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/courier_journal/access/1839458411.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Aug+20%2C+2009&author=Darla+Carter&pub=Courier+-+Journal&edition=&startpage=D.1&desc=Enjoy+the+fair%2C+but+don%27t+wreck+your+diet|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130131135940/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/courier_journal/access/1839458411.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Aug+20,+2009&author=Darla+Carter&pub=Courier+-+Journal&edition=&startpage=D.1&desc=Enjoy+the+fair,+but+don't+wreck+your+diet|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 31, 2013|title=Enjoy the fair, but don't wreck your diet|last=Carter|first=Darla|newspaper=Louisville Courier-Journal|date=August 21, 2009|access-date=September 13, 2009|quote=A 5½-ounce bag of cotton candy can have 725 calories.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060927/NEWS/609270304|newspaper=Pocono Record|date=September 27, 2006|access-date=September 13, 2009|title=Cotton candy on a stick (about 1 ounce) has 105 calories, but when bagged (2 ounces) it has double that number: 210.|archive-date=December 2, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202222044/http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20060927%2FNEWS%2F609270304|url-status=live}}</ref>

It is made and sold globally, as ''candy floss'' in the United Kingdom, Ireland, India, New Zealand,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://sugarstand.com/candy-floss-vs-cotton-candy/|title=Candy Floss vs Cotton Candy|website=SugarStand.com|access-date=January 25, 2023 |archive-date=February 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230224172058/https://sugarstand.com/candy-floss-vs-cotton-candy/ |url-status=usurped }}</ref> and South Africa, and as ''fairy floss'' in Australia.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.grunge.com/54701/untold-truth-cotton-candy/ |title=The Untold Truth of Cotton Candy |website=Grunge |date=4 April 2017 |access-date=January 8, 2019 |archive-date=July 3, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180703135356/http://www.grunge.com/54701/untold-truth-cotton-candy |url-status=live }}</ref> Similar confections include the Chinese longxusu, the Korean {{transliteration|ko|kkul-tarae}} and the Iranian {{transliteration|fa|pashmak}}.

== History == thumb|Maple-flavored cotton candy at the {{lang|fr|cabane à sucre}} (sugar shack), Pakenham, Canada

Several sources track the origin of cotton candy to a form of spun sugar found in Europe in the 19th century. At that time, spun sugar was an expensive, labor-intensive endeavor and was not generally available to the average person.<ref name="The Food Timeline">{{cite web |work=The Food Timeline |first=Lynne |last=Olver |author-link=Lynne Olver |url=http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodcandy.html#cottoncandy |title=history notes-candy |access-date=November 30, 2011 |archive-date=May 4, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180504002845/http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodcandy.html#cottoncandy |url-status=live }}</ref> Others suggest versions of spun sugar originated in Italy as early as the 15th century.<ref name="cottoncandy.net">{{cite web |author=Linda Fri |url=http://www.cottoncandy.net/history.html |title=Cotton Candy History |publisher=CottonCandy.net |date=August 11, 2010 |access-date=June 28, 2015 |archive-date=July 1, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150701005917/http://www.cottoncandy.net/history.html |url-status=usurped }}</ref>

Machine-spun cotton candy was invented in 1897 by dentist William Morrison and confectioner John C. Wharton, and first introduced to a wide audience at the 1904 World's Fair as Fairy Floss<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mcottoncandy.html |title=Cotton Candy |publisher=The Straight Dope |date=February 7, 2000 |access-date=November 30, 2011 |archive-date=December 6, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131206121138/http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1738/who-invented-cotton-candy |url-status=live }}</ref> with great success, selling 68,655 boxes at 25¢ (${{format price|{{Inflation|index=US|value=0.25|start_year=1904|r=2}}}} today) per box.{{Citation needed|date=October 2020}}

In late 1903, while the fairgrounds in St. Louis were still under construction, a visitor described the new confection and its manufacture: "Electricity has a new use--that of spinning candy. 'Fairy Floss' is the name of the dainty. Samples of it look like pink cotton such as they pack around Christmas jewelry. The inventor desires to manufacture the confection on the grounds where the public can see it done. The candy mixture is put in a hopper and the current turned on. The filmy web soon becomes visible, and as it grows the color and flavor and perhaps chopped meats of nuts are sprinkled in the web. The taste is such as to make it immediately marketable.<ref>"Register Millions By Mechanism." Arkansas Democrat, 20 December 1903, 15.</ref>

On 6 September 1905, Albert D. Robinson of Lynn, Massachusetts submitted his patent for an electric candy-spinning machine, a combination of an electronic starter and motor-driven rotatable bowl that maintained heating efficiently. By May 1907, he transferred the rights to the General Electric Company of New York. His patent remains today as the basic cotton candy machine.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yLAAgp4QsAwC&q=candy-+spinning+machine&pg=PA2226|title=Official Gazette of the United States Patent Office|date=1907|publisher=The Office|language=en|access-date=2020-10-17|archive-date=2021-07-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210712031630/https://books.google.com/books?id=yLAAgp4QsAwC&q=candy-+spinning+machine&pg=PA2226|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1915, food writer Julia Davis Chandler described "Candy Cotton" being sold at the Panama–Pacific International Exposition.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Davis Chandler |first1=Julia |title=American Cookery |url=https://archive.org/details/americancookery19unse_0/page/21/mode/1up |website=archive.org |publisher=The Boston Cooking School Magazine Company |access-date=29 January 2024 |page=22}}</ref>

Joseph Lascaux, a dentist from New Orleans, Louisiana, invented a similar cotton candy machine in 1921. His patent named the sweet confection "cotton candy", eventually overtaking the name ‘fairy floss’, although it retains this name in Australia.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fineentertaining.com/page/History-of-Cotton-Candy|title=History of Cotton Candy|website=Fineentertaining.com|access-date=June 28, 2012|archive-date=June 29, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120629071806/http://www.fineentertaining.com/page/History-of-Cotton-Candy|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Cotton Candy Fun Facts">{{cite web|url=http://www.candyusa.com/FunStuff/FunFactsDetail.cfm?ItemNumber=967 |title=Cotton Candy Fun Facts |access-date=October 24, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110708114410/http://www.candyusa.com/FunStuff/FunFactsDetail.cfm?ItemNumber=967 |archive-date=July 8, 2011}}</ref> In the 1970s, an automatic cotton candy machine was created which made the product and packaged it, making it easier to produce at carnivals, stalls and other events requiring more portable production.

Tootsie Roll Industries, the world's largest cotton candy manufacturer, produces a bagged, fruit-flavored version called Fluffy Stuff.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tootsie.com/products.php?pid=148 |title=Welcome to Tootsie&nbsp;– Product Information&nbsp;– Fluffy Stuff Cotton Candy |publisher=Tootsie.com |date=May 22, 2010 |access-date=November 30, 2011 |archive-date=November 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111104190815/http://www.tootsie.com/products.php?pid=148 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In the United States, National Cotton Candy Day is celebrated on 7 December.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://eatocracy.cnn.com/2011/12/07/breakfast-buffet-national-cotton-candy-day/ |title=Breakfast buffet: National cotton candy day |publisher=CNN |date=December 7, 2011 |access-date=July 3, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150704222741/http://eatocracy.cnn.com/2011/12/07/breakfast-buffet-national-cotton-candy-day/ |archive-date=July 4, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thv11.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=184179 |title=National Cotton Candy Day is Dec. 7 |publisher=THV11 |date=December 7, 2011 |access-date=2023-12-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151019153447/http://archive.thv11.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=184179 |archive-date=2015-10-19 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

== Production == thumb|Cotton candy machine [[File:Watagashi 2013 (9527560798).jpg|thumb|Bags of cotton candy being sold in Japan]] thumb|A man selling cotton candy in Kolkata, West Bengal, India

Typical machines used to make cotton candy include a spinning head enclosing a small "sugar reserve" bowl into which a charge of granulated, colored sugar (or separate sugar and food coloring) is poured. Heaters near the rim of the head melt the sugar, which is squeezed out through tiny holes by centrifugal force. Colored sugar packaged specially for the process is milled with melting characteristics and a crystal size optimized for the head and heated holes; granulated sugar used in baking contains fine crystals which spin out unmelted, while rock sugar crystals are too large to properly contact the heater, slowing the production of cotton candy.

The molten sugar solidifies in the air and is caught in a larger bowl which totally surrounds the spinning head. Left to operate for a period, the cotton-like product builds up on the inside walls of the larger bowl, at which point machine operators twirl a stick or cone around the rim of the large catching bowl, gathering the sugar strands into portions which are served on stick or cone, or in plastic bags. As the sugar reserve bowl empties, the operator recharges it with more feedstock. The product is sensitive to humidity, and in humid summer locales, the process can be messy and sticky.

== Flavoring ==

The source material for candy mesh is usually both colored and flavored. When spun, cotton candy is white because it is made from sugar, but adding dye or coloring transforms the color. Originally, cotton candy was just white. In the US, cotton candy is available in a wide variety of flavors, but two flavor-blend colors predominate—blue raspberry and pink vanilla,<ref name="FICottonCandy">{{cite web |url=https://myfoodjobrocks.com/cotton-candy/ |title=FLAVOR INVESTIGATOR: COTTON CANDY |author=Veronica Hislop |date=23 August 2017 |publisher=My Food Job Rocks! |access-date=2020-10-07 |archive-date=2020-10-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201007203516/https://myfoodjobrocks.com/cotton-candy/ |url-status=live }}</ref> both originally formulated by the Gold Medal brand (which uses the names "Boo Blue" and "Silly Nilly"). Cotton candy may come out purple when mixed. Cotton candy machines were notoriously unreliable until Gold Medal's invention of a sprung base in 1949—since then, they have manufactured nearly all commercial cotton candy machines and much of the cotton candy in the US.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1738/who-invented-cotton-candy |title=Who invented cotton candy? |publisher=The Straight Dope |date=February 7, 2000 |access-date=March 16, 2017 |archive-date=February 22, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170222041222/http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1738/who-invented-cotton-candy |url-status=live }}</ref>

Typically, once spun, cotton candy is only marketed by color. Absent a clear name other than "blue", the distinctive taste of the blue raspberry flavor mix has gone on to become a compound flavor that some other foods (gum, ice cream, rock candy, fluoride toothpaste) occasionally borrow ("cotton-candy flavored ice cream") to invoke the nostalgia of cotton candy. The sale of blue cotton candy at fairgrounds in the 1950s is one of the first documented instances of blue-raspberry flavoring in America.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Spence|first=Charles|date=2021|title=What's the Story With Blue Steak? On the Unexpected Popularity of Blue Foods|journal=Frontiers in Psychology|volume=12|pages=499|doi=10.3389/fpsyg.2021.638703|pmid=33737898|pmc=7960775|issn=1664-1078|doi-access=free}}</ref> Pink bubble gum went through a similar transition from specific branded product to a generic flavor that transcended the original confection, and "bubble gum flavor" often shows up in the same product categories as "cotton candy flavor".{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

== Machines == [[File:Man_makes_cotton_candy_in_cotton_candy_machine.jpg|thumb|Man makes cotton candy in cotton candy machine, village Bharaj, Sangrur, Punjab, India]]

In 1978, the first automated machine was used for the production of cotton candy. Since then, many variants have appeared, ranging in size from counter-top to party- and carnival-size. Modern machines for commercial use can hold up to {{convert|3|lbs}} of sugar, have storage for extra flavors, and have bowls that spin at 3,450 revolutions per minute.<ref>{{cite web |last=Venzon |first=Christine |url=http://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/edible-innovations/cotton-candy3.htm |title=How Stuff Works Inc. "Cotton Candy Machines and Marketing Today." Howstuffworks.com. Web. September 14, 2011 |publisher=Science.howstuffworks.com |date=December 3, 2009 |access-date=November 30, 2011 |archive-date=November 26, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111126105114/http://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/edible-innovations/cotton-candy3.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Bans ==

In February 2024, the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry implemented a ban{{Clarify|date=January 2026|reason= Bans on what?}} after lab tests confirmed the presence of a cancer-causing substance, rhodamine-B, in samples sent for testing.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2024-02-22 |title=Cotton candy: Pink sugary sweet sets off alarm bells in India |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-68366703 |access-date=2024-02-22 |language=en-GB}}</ref> Andhra Pradesh reportedly started testing samples of the candy while food safety officials in Delhi were pushing for a ban.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sravani |first=Nellore |date=2024-02-19 |title=After Tamil Nadu bans sale of cotton candy, A.P. government directs officials to send samples for testing |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/after-tamil-nadu-bans-sale-of-cotton-candy-ap-government-directs-officials-to-send-samples-for-testing/article67864259.ece |access-date=2024-02-22 |work=The Hindu |language=en-IN |issn=0971-751X}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Srivastava |first=Ashish |date=2024-02-22 |title=Taking cue from Tamil Nadu, Delhi govt likely to put ban on cotton candy |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/delhi/2024/Feb/22/taking-cue-from-tamil-nadu-delhi-govt-likely-to-put-ban-on-cotton-candy |access-date=2024-02-22 |website=The New Indian Express |language=en}}</ref>

Studies have shown that the chemical can increase the risk of cancer and Europe and California have made its use as a food dye illegal.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2005-09-12 |title=EFSA reviews toxicological data of illegal dyes in food {{!}} EFSA |url=https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/news/efsa-reviews-toxicological-data-illegal-dyes-food |access-date=2024-02-22 |website=www.efsa.europa.eu |language=en}}</ref>

== See also == {{portal|Food}}

* Candy making * Dragon's beard candy

== References ==

{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==

* ''The Complete Confectioners, Pastry, Cook and Baker'' by M. Sanderson (Philadelphia: Lippincott) * [http://www.cottoncandyexpress.com/history.html "History of Cotton Candy"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170707083926/http://www.cottoncandyexpress.com/history.html |date=2017-07-07 }}. Cotton Candy Express. N.p., n.d. Web. September 14, 2011.

== External links ==

* {{Wiktionary inline|cotton candy}}

Category:Amorphous solids Category:Candy Category:Desserts Category:Food and drink introduced in 1897 Category:Sugar confectionery