05/10/2022
Cool article!
Don’t be alarmed, but the candy found for sale at Hotlix in Pismo Beach is teeming with insects. These bugs are no longer on the move because they’re actually encapsulated in various suckers and chocolates. This buggy boutique all started decades ago because of the owner’s interest in entomophagy — the practice of eating insects — and has since grown into an international phenomenon.
Larry Peterman bought the candy store in 1986 and about three years later began purposefully adding bugs to candy to create his signature insect suckers. Today, the 82-year-old still oversees the entire operation, which dates back to its origins as the senior project of Cal Poly business students. Larry says his shop got its start crafting lollipops from leftover candy apple syrup in more traditional flavors like butter rum, whiskey and tequila. He eventually decided to add a worm to the tequila pop, which is how the original tequila sucker began. The scorpion sucker reigns as the top seller, with the seasoned crickets coming in at a close second. “The worms and the crickets are great for snacking,” says Larry. “You can even put them on salads.”
*Featured in our current Spring 2022 Issue, on stands now. Pick up your copy to read this article in its entirety and check out our website for so much more: edibleSLO.com
Words by Molly O’Brien
📸by Jennifer Olson
