According to the National Confectioners Association, Valentine’s Day is the fourth biggest holiday of the year for confectionery purchases (after Halloween, Easter and Christmas). From heart-shaped boxes of chocolates to conversation candies, when people think of Valentine’s day, our minds jump straight to the sweets!
Excluding myself, I don’t know of anyone who thinks of GSP when Valentine’s Day rolls around, but perhaps they should. More than $150 million worth of “sugar confections” (including white chocolates) and chocolate products entered the United States duty free in 2010, saving more than $8.5 million.
Some of the top sources for GSP candies in 2010 include Argentina, Brazil, Thailand, Turkey, and Colombia. Pennsylvania-based Hershey’s, which makes Kisses, Reese’s, 
Twizzlers, and Almond Joys – imports confections and chocolates from Brazil. So does Nestle, based in California and the maker of famous products like Crunch, and Butterfinger. Haribo, based in Maryland, imports GSP-eligible products from Turkey.
While Valentine’s Day will come and go without Congressional action to renew GSP, we hold out hope that Congress will act before our we go on our next big candy-buying spree for Easter.
