Much of USA's Valentine's candy came from Mexico

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Much of U.S. Chocolate Comes From Across the Border

Yet these days, the odds are pretty good that the candy comes from Mexico.

From jellied hearts to chocolates, Mexico's candy exports to the United States have more than doubled since 2002 as cheaper labor and sugar draw U.S. candymakers south of the border.

The latest arrival is Hershey, which is building a 1,500-employee factory in the northern Mexican city of Monterrey to replace plants it closed in the USA and Canada. It's following the lead of companies ranging from Brach's Confections, famous for its caramels, to Ferrara Pan Candy, the maker of Red Hots and Jawbusters.

Confectioners say they're trying to survive in a difficult business climate, but U.S. unions bemoan the loss of candymaking jobs. "All these companies want to make it cheap overseas somewhere, then bring it back and sell it to our people who don't have any jobs to buy it," said Dennis Bomberger, business manager of Chocolate Workers Local 464 in Hershey, Pa.