National Gummy Worm Day: Celebrate with the world’s largest gummy worm

Tuesday is National Gummy Worm Day. Bet you didn’t see that one coming. Turns out there’s an entire day devoted to these sweet creepy-crawlers.

Sure, you can celebrate by heading to the store and grabbing a bag of gummys. But if you consider yourself a true aficionado, you’ll want to order the world’s largest gummy worm.

A company called Vat 19 makes a 3-pound, 26-inch gummy worm. The candy features a ribbed body, a five-inch girth and dual flavors including cherry, orange, blue raspberry, lemon, pineapple and green apple.

The giant worm contains a whopping 4,000 calories. They also have a shelf life of a year, so you have time to nibble. You can order the worms online for $27.99 a piece.

And if you’re wondering where the gummy worm came from, first we need to look to its cousin, the Gummi Bear. According to the National Confectioners Assn., the Gummi Bear was invented in Germany in 1922 by candy maker Hans Riegel.

In 1981, the candy company Trolli introduced the “gummy worm” called Squiggles as a way for kids to shock their parents.

Got a sweet tooth? Follow me on Twitter @Jenn_Harris