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About Us

logo-011215.png       candyandnutstore.com

Candyandnutstore.com is the official website for Dayton Nut Specialties, Inc. We are a family owned business which manufactures the finest quality nuts and candy in two facilities in Dayton and Springboro, Ohio. Our products are marketed under various brand names which include Dayton Nut, Friesingers, Candy Farm and Riverdale Fine Foods. Below is a brief history of our company and some of our brands.

dn-about-logo.png       DAYTON NUT SPECIALTIES

In 1920, Jesse Primer wanted to start a business of his own. For advise, he contacted our federal government which recommended he enter the peanut roasting business. At that time, peanuts were just becoming part of the American palate. Jesse started selling peanuts in a small store-front location on North Main Street. Quickly outgrowing his first shop, Jesse and his son began building a factory across the street, brick-by-brick. The factory opened in 1923 as The Dayton Nut Products Company, making us one of America's oldest nut processors. Dayton Nut still utilizes Jesse's original building on North Main Street. The current proprietor, Stanley Maschino, was first employed by Dayton Nut in the early 1950's, eventually purchasing the company in 1977. The Maschino family continues to run the day-to-day operation of the business and uphold the high standards Jesse Primer established all those years ago.

fr-about-logo.png         FRIESINGER'S CHOCOLATES

John Friesinger began candy making as an apprentice in Chicago in the late 1800's. He moved to Dayton, Ohio and founded J. Friesinger & Son in 1894. His new business was established as a wholesale manufacturer of fine chocolates and candies for sale to drug stores, which were the primary source for candy at that time. Mr. Friesinger equipped his factory with "modern" production machinery, while other companies had to rely on laborious hand methods. Interestingly, we still use some of his original equipment today. Three generations of the Friesinger family led the company until 1986 when it became part of Dayton Nut Specialties. In 1996, Friesinger's moved to our modern facility in Springboro, Ohio.

cf-about-logo.png       CANDY FARM

Our popular Candy Farm brand name was established many years ago by John Friesinger's grandson, Harvey "Bud" Schwab. The name came about when Friesinger's moved its plant from urban Dayton, Ohio, to an outlying area of rural farmland north of town. Today, our Candy Farm 3 Color Coconut bars are marketed throughout the country.