{{short description|Fruit snack with liquid filling}} {{use mdy dates|date=August 2024}} {{Infobox food | name = Fruit Gushers | image = Betty Crocker Fruit Gushers pieces (cropped).jpg | image_alt = | caption = Fruit Gushers (2017) | alternate_name = Gushers | type = Fruit snack | year = 1991 | serving_size = 28 g | calories = 90 | calories_ref = <ref name="1991-12-19 Sun-Sentinel" /> | no_recipes = false }}

'''Fruit Gushers''' (also simply '''Gushers''') are a Betty Crocker-branded fruit snack introduced in 1991. They are described as soft and chewy with a fruity-juice center.

==History== Fruit Gushers (sometimes simply "Gushers") were introduced in 1991<ref name="1991-12-19 Sun-Sentinel" /> as a Betty Crocker fruit snack.<ref name="2013-07-25 Complex" /> Each box of Fruit Gushers was list priced at {{US$|2.19|1991}} and contained six pouches of Gushers, each of which had nine individual pieces for {{convert|90|Cal}} per pouch.<ref name="1991-12-19 Sun-Sentinel" />

==Composition== Strawberry-flavored Fruit Gushers are composed of sugar, dried corn syrup, corn syrup, modified corn starch, fructose, pear concentrate, and grape juice concentrate.<ref name="2018-11 Nourishment" /><ref name="2025-03-28-off" /> Targeted at children, they were acorn-shaped with a soft "licorice-like" exterior and a liquid inside, including "strawberries and pear puree concentrate", and came in two flavors: "Strawberry Splash" and "Gushin' Grape".<ref name="1991-12-19 Sun-Sentinel" />

In 2003, one serving of any Fruit Gushers variety was one {{convert|0.9|oz|adj=on}} package with 90 calories, zero protein, {{convert|1|g|spell=in}} of fat, and {{convert|20|g}} of carbohydrates.<ref name="2003-02 Protein Counter" /> In 2018, 90 calories worth of Strawberry Fruit Gushers weighed {{convert|28|g}} and contained {{convert|9|g|spell=in}} of sugar, one gram of fat, and cost {{US$|0.46|2018|round=2|long=no}}.<ref name="2018-11 Nourishment" /> Prior to 2025, the serving size was reduced to {{convert|0.8|oz}}, 80 calories, and contained {{convert|10|g|spell=in}} of sugar.<ref name="2025-03-28-off" />

==Varieties== Betty Crocker released a new variety of Fruit Gushers in early 2020: "Galactic Fruit Gushers". These featured the flavors "Asteroid Apple", "Berry Star Cluster", and a mystery flavor labeled "Unidentified Flavored Object"; the latter was part of a contest where consumers could guess at the unknown flavor and win prizes "like sweatshirts, hats, blankets, PopSockets, and more". Galactic Fruit Gushers were sold through Walmart.com for {{US$|5.88|2020|long=no}}.<ref name="2020-01-14 Delish" />

In June 2024, the brand announced that its most-popular flavor, watermelon (previously available from 1997&ndash;2013), was returning to store shelves to meet consumer demands; combined with sour-apple flavored Gushers, boxes of six sachets were to be sold for {{US$|6.49|2024|long=no}}, while boxes of ten sachets would sell for {{US$|10.29|2024|long=no}}.<ref name="2024-06-14 Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery" />

==Reception== A 1991 ''Sun-Sentinel'' review said that the insides oozed rather than gushed, and found the confectionery surprisingly pleasant.<ref name="1991-12-19 Sun-Sentinel" /> In 2013, ''Complex'' magazine ranked Fruit Gushers the second-best fruit snack of all time, coming in behind another Betty Crocker product, Shark Bites.<ref name="2013-07-25 Complex" />

In September 2023, police in St. Marys, Kansas reported misinformation of seizing fruit snacks and gummies, laced with tetrahydrocannabinol, being packaged as real commercial brands thereof&mdash;including Fruit Gushers.<ref name="2023-09-19 WIBW" />

==See also== * {{annotated link|Fruit by the Foot}} * {{annotated link|Fruit Roll-Ups}}

==References== <references> <!-- dated sources sorted chronologically -->

<ref name="1991-12-19 Sun-Sentinel">{{cite news |last1=Noding |first1=Jodi |date=1991-12-19 |title=Kids' Snack Gushes with Fruit Flavor |url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1991-12-19-9102220711-story.html |url-status=live |work=Sun-Sentinel |language=en |issn=0744-8139 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330170208/https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1991-12-19-9102220711-story.html |archive-date=2019-03-30 |access-date=2020-05-09 |url-access=subscription}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="2003-02 Protein Counter">{{cite book |last1=Natow |first1=Annette B. |last2=Heslin |first2=Jo-Ann |date=February 2003 |orig-year=1997 |chapter=Brand Name, Nonbranded (Generic) & Take-Out Foods |title=The Protein Counter |language=en |edition=2nd |location=1230 Avenue of the Americas |publisher=Pocket Books |page=205 |isbn=0-7434-6434-6}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="2013-07-25 Complex">{{cite magazine |last1=Castro |first1=Vanessa |date=2013-07-25 |title=The 25 Greatest Fruit Snacks of All Time |url=https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/07/greatest-fruit-snacks-of-all-time/ |url-status=live |magazine=Complex |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190214061645/https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/07/greatest-fruit-snacks-of-all-time/ |archive-date=2019-02-14 |access-date=2020-05-09}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="2018-11 Nourishment">{{cite book |last1=Provenza |first1=Fred |date=November 2018 |chapter=More Than One Kind of Memory |title=Nourishment: What Animals Can Teach Us About Rediscovering Our Nutritional Wisdom |language=en |location=White River Junction, Vermont |publisher=Chelsea Green Publishing |pages=72–82 |isbn=9781603588027 |lccn=2018028053}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="2020-01-14 Delish">{{cite web |url=https://www.delish.com/food-news/a30516561/gushers-space-mystery-flavor/ |title=Gushers Has Limited-Edition Space Flavors Including A Delicious Mystery Gummy |last=Miller |first=Korin |date=2020-01-14 |website=Delish |language=en |access-date=2020-05-09 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200509223326/https://www.delish.com/food-news/a30516561/gushers-space-mystery-flavor/ |archive-date=2020-05-09 |quote=It's multiple choice!}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="2023-09-19 WIBW">{{cite news |last1=Motter |first1=Sarah |date=2023-09-19 |title=Parents warned to keep an eye on children's snacks as THC gummies seized |url=https://www.wibw.com/2023/09/19/parents-warned-keep-an-eye-childrens-snacks-thc-gummies-seized/ |url-status=live |language=en |location=St. Marys, Kansas |publisher=WIBW-TV |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240226230030/https://www.wibw.com/2023/09/19/parents-warned-keep-an-eye-childrens-snacks-thc-gummies-seized/ |archive-date=2024-02-26 |access-date=2024-02-26}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="2024-06-14 Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery">{{cite magazine |last1=Parker |first1=Liz |date=2024-06-14 |title=Gushers returns Watermelon flavor to shelves |url=https://www.snackandbakery.com/articles/111495-gushers-returns-watermelon-flavor-to-shelves |url-status=live |magazine=Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery |language=en |issn=2329-1680 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240811101140/https://www.snackandbakery.com/articles/111495-gushers-returns-watermelon-flavor-to-shelves |archive-date=2024-08-11 |access-date=2024-08-13 |quote=The brand is rereleasing the flavor due to fan requests.}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="2025-03-28-off">{{cite web |url=https://world.openfoodfacts.org/product/0065633424470/fruit-gushers |title=Fruit Gushers|date=2022-10-04 |website=Open Food Facts |language=en |access-date=2025-03-28 }}</ref> </references>

==External links== * {{official website|1=https://www.gushers.com}}

{{General Mills}}

Category:American snack foods Category:brand name confectionery Category:General Mills brands Category:products introduced in 1991 Category:Food for children