NATURAL CANDY FACTORY

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We generally used up a whole 70-pound carton of dates in one week and turned out about 25 boxes of Almond Date Balls. The same amount of candy also required around seven pounds of almonds, three of coconut, three of sesame seeds, four of sunflower seeds and one and a half of poppy seeds.

The following is an approximate breakdown of costs of ingredients per pound ( . . . as of last winter, and you know what's been happening to food prices between then and now. —MOTHER.):

We also spent 70¢ for a box of clear plastic wrap, and the same amount for two rolls of designed paper toweling, about every three weeks.

Counting the time required for setting up and cleaning up, you can figure about one hour's work per box (that's approximately $4.00 gross profit per hour) . . . or five work hours per day for five days per 70 pounds of dates. Then, on the sixth day, all 25 boxes are piled in the van for delivery, and the seventh day is one of rest. So, for five hours' daily work (at one's own convenience) at home or on the back lawn—and one day of toting boxes—the candymaker has earned $100. That's minus the cost of transportation . . . which we never considered, for delivery time was always shopping time with us. While we sold our candies at the natural food stores, we did our marketing there too!

Another advantage of the candy business is that it needn't confine you to one location. When summer came around, we prepared a large batch of the balls, packed it in three big plastic buckets with tight lids (recycled bakery supply containers) and took the containers along on an extended holiday camping trip to the Okanagan . . . B.C.'s fruit-growing region. All the other ingredients proved equally adaptable to travel: Large plastic bags held the coatings, and the boxes, plastic rolling bowls, wooden spoons and wrapping materials packed neatly into the back of the van.

Whenever we found a nice public campsite—preferably with water nearby—and the weather was warm and sunny, we'd stop and make our candies on the grass or at a picnic table. Michael would scoop out some dates from a bucket and place an almond on top, and I would roll the ball in a bowl of poppy seed, coconut or whatnot and place it neatly in the already cut and prepared box.

We had no trouble selling Almond Date Balls on the way. In fact, that's how we paid for our trip and the wonderful fruit on which we feasted all summer. Once we came upon an outdoor crafts and pleasure fair and set up a little table of our own. People were delighted to watch and sample . . . and, since we didn't have to pay any commission to a store, all the profit was ours. By the end of just one day our pockets were jingling merrily.

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