FADS Fun Sticks, formerly known as FAGS, and later FADS, are a brand of
candy cigarette
Candy cigarettes are a candy introduced in the late 19th century made out of chalky sugar, bubblegum or chocolate, wrapped in paper and packaged and branded so as to resemble cigarettes. Some products contain powdered sugar hidden in the wrapper ...
made by Riviera Confectionery (a division of Fyna Foods Australia) in
Victoria, Australia. First produced as FAGS (formerly used as British/
Australian slang
Australian English is a major variety of the English language spoken throughout Australia. Most of the vocabulary of Australian English is shared with British English, though there are notable differences. The vocabulary of Australia is drawn ...
for
cigarettes
A cigarette is a narrow cylinder containing a combustible material, typically tobacco, that is rolled into thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end, causing it to smolder; the resulting smoke is orally inhaled via the oppo ...
) in 1943, during the 1990s, the product was renamed FADS amidst concerns of it promoting smoking to children, as well as
pejorative connotations of the word. During the 2000s, "Fun Sticks" was added to the name to further distance the product from its connection to cigarettes.
The original candies were modelled after cigarettes, thin white sticks with a red tip to resemble a lit end.
The red tip was later removed during the 1990s with the name change.
Today, Fads are manufactured in
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
rather than Australia as they originally were.
File:FAGS Candy cigarettes (pre-1990s).jpg, FAGS
(c. early 1990s with red tips)
(clockwise from left) front, opened top and side (height)
File:FADS 1990s.jpg, FADS
(c. mid-1990s)
most of a flattened FADS box
File:Old Style FADS Fun Sticks candy.jpg, FAGS/FADS
(c. early 1990s)
candy alone with "lit" red tips
References
{{Reflist
Australian confectionery