Sugar work

Gummies, which are not a crystal product at all

Updated October 2026

On this page7

What is actually happening Gelatin and pectin behave differently They carry much more water Drying is part of the process They stick to each other, which the package has to handle Gelatin is an ingredient with a label consequence References

Gummies sit in this group and have nothing to do with the crystal control the rest of it runs on. They are a gel.

What is actually happening

A hydrocolloid, usually gelatin or pectin, forms a network that traps water and sugar syrup inside it. The texture comes from the strength of that network rather than from any crystal structure, which makes the whole sugar-stage vocabulary largely irrelevant.

Gelatin and pectin behave differently

Gelatin sets on cooling and melts again on warming, which is why a gelatin gummy softens in a warm room and a pectin one does not. Pectin needs acid and sugar to set and gives a shorter, cleaner bite. They are not substitutes for each other and swapping them is a reformulation.

They carry much more water

Which means they sit higher on the water activity scale than a hard candy or a brittle, and their keeping depends on the sugar concentration in the syrup phase. That is a real difference from the rest of this property and it is worth measuring rather than assuming.

Drying is part of the process

Most gummies are conditioned after molding, losing surface moisture to reach the right texture and to stop them sticking to each other. That is a controlled step with a time and a humidity attached, not simply leaving them out.

They stick to each other, which the package has to handle

A dusting or a coating, and a container that does not let them compact into a single mass. This is one of the few products in the library where the pieces damage each other in the package.

Gelatin is an ingredient with a label consequence

It is animal derived, which matters to a substantial number of buyers, and pectin products are the usual answer. Being explicit about which you use is worth doing on the front of the package rather than only in the ingredient list.

References

21 CFR 101, Food Labeling, which carries the general requirements that apply where there is no standard of identity: the statement of identity, net quantity, ingredient list, allergen declaration and the name and place of business of the responsible party. law.cornell.edu

21 CFR 114, Acidified Foods, whose 114.3 definition applies only to foods with a water activity greater than 0.85 — which is why most confectionery sits outside it. law.cornell.edu

Written from federal regulation and the published physical chemistry of sugar and cocoa butter, not from a laboratory. The chocolate standards of identity are specific and the sugar confectionery names are not, which is the main thing to carry away. Anything here is a starting point for a conversation with your state department of agriculture, not a determination that you comply.