{{Original research, date=December 2018
Ahlgrens was a Swedish confectionery company. It was founded by Fredrik Ahlgren in the town of Gävle in 1885 as a store for paint and wallpaper, a business which was later extended to the production and sale of various types of chemicals, perfumes and other products. A
mouthwash
Mouthwash, mouth rinse, oral rinse, or mouth bath is a liquid which is held in the mouth passively or swilled around the mouth by contraction of the perioral muscles and/or movement of the head, and may be gargled, where the head is tilted back ...
, introduced in 1908, was given the brandname
Läkerol
Läkerol is a Swedish brand of candies. The candies are sugar-free pastilles with the major ingredient being gum arabic. The candies are produced in a variety of flavors. The candy is produced by the Swedish confectionery company, Cloetta. Là ...
, a year later given to a
pastille
A pastille is a type of sweet or medicinal pill made of a thick liquid that has been solidified and is meant to be consumed by light chewing and allowing it to dissolve in the mouth. The term is also used to describe certain forms of incense.
...
, which is still sold internationally in several variants.
The company was in 1993 later bought by the Finnish company Huhtamäki which quickly terminated the brand Ahlgrens and rebranded all its products to
Leaf
A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...
except for Ahlgrens bilar.
The product still most closely associated with the brand is 'Ahlgrens bilar' ("Ahlgren's Cars"), sold since 1953 and marketed as "the world's most sold car" (which is possibly technically correct, by number of cars). The small marshmallow cars are so popular within Sweden that stores that specifically cater to Swedish tourists and residents in other countries have started selling them as well.
The brand has been extended to other car- and road-related products, liquorice car tyres,
travel trailer
A caravan, travel trailer, camper, tourer or camper trailer is a trailer towed behind a road vehicle to provide a place to sleep which is more comfortable and protected than a tent (although there are fold-down trailer tents). It provides th ...
s and sour road signs, the latter including the elk warning signs beloved by German tourists.