Okay, this is where thing get really weird. MDM debut their silver coin celebration of a century of Haribo

Everyone knows the Haribo Goldbear, and now it joins that other perennial favourite of the confectionary world, PEZ, in having its long-running existence celebrated in silver. It was a hundred years ago that this mix of, sometimes less than savoury ingredients, first appeared on its quest to mop up pocket money, and wages, of the world’s population.

MDM have chosen the unusual option of reproducing the actual Goldbear, rather than just depict them on a standard silver coin, and they seem to have hit the mark in that regard, much like PAMP did with another German sweet behemoth, PEZ. These are pretty much spot on for looks, and the range of colours does a great job of highlighting the range of flavours. The main set consists of six half-ounce silver coins, issued for Samoa, all presented in a themed box. Each apes the original size and colour of an original candy. There will be 5,000 sets produced.

Also on offer, is a larger version formed in a full ounce of 0.999 silver, which is then gilded. The bigger bear comes in a themed box and is also capped at 5,000 pieces. As we said, a quite eclectic release, it’s certainly something different. Available to order now, it should ship in January. Don’t drop them in a bag of the sweets, though. Could be an expensive dental mistake…

HARIBO

German confectionary company Haribo, was registered in Bonn, Germany way back in 1920 by Hans Riegal Sr. The name is taken from these details, HA (Hans) RI Riegel), BO (Bonn). Two years later, the company created Gummibärchen, what we know today as Gummi Bears. They were originally called Tanzbär (Dancing Bear), but they’re now known as Goldbears.

Starting out with just a few ingredients to its name, Haribo expanded locally until the 1960’s, before starting its international expansion. It now operates 16 factories around the globe, producing over 100 million gummy bears every day. In addition, they produce a range of over 100 different sweets for different markets.

The flagship product are the Goldbears, available in at least 25 different flavours around the world. Fruit gums in the shape of stylised bears, that are 2 cm in height, and consist of sugar, sugar syrup, colourants and flavourings, they are the inspiration for the new coins.