Gumdrop

A food and nutrition dictionary published by Oxford describes gum drops as sugar confectionery based on sucrose and glucose with gum arabic, which makes the firmer hard gums. Soft gums are made from a mixture of gelatine and gum arabic. Fruit gums is another name for candies of this kind.

The Encyclopedia of Food and Culture notes that gum drops and pastilles rely on gelatin and plant-derived gums for their texture, and it lists bright colored gumdrops among the sugar-based candies.

Once set, the candy has a firm, slightly elastic, gel-like chew. Gumdrops are commonly coated with crystalline sugar, which gives the outside a sparkling, grainy coat. They come in many fruit flavors and bright colors and are also used as decoration on gingerbread houses and cakes.