Candy factory!

sirensix · Feb 5, 2009

Anyone ever worked in one or toured one?

I need a good idea of what the inside of a recently-closed candy factory in Massachusetts would look like. And - yes, once again, my questions get gruesome - I need for there to be some sort of oven that a person could fit inside and be burned to death in relatively quickly. Is that realistic/possible?

*ducks and cringes*

If it sounds like I'm doing some sort of freakish twist on Hansel & Gretel, well, you're not far off.

Mumut · Feb 5, 2009

Cadbury's chocolate factory in Tasmania has wonderful, very large vats full of hot ingredients for the chocolates. You could have the mint flavour one all of a sudden spew out red coloured filling, then one of the chocolates could be riding down the conveyor belt as one of hundreds of regimented candies - but instead of a strawberry on top it has a human eye.

There's all sorts of horrible possibilities.

sirensix · Feb 6, 2009

HAHAHAHAHAHAAAA.

Though I love that, in my story no one ACTUALLY dies, there's just a threat of someone being taken to an abandoned candy factory and burned to death. The person has to die by burning, and it has to be actual fire, so it would have to be an oven or some such. Are there ovens or incinerators or other sources of human-burning fire in a candy factory? What is used to heat the giant vats of melted chocolate and such?

alleycat · Feb 6, 2009

I've been inside a candy factory, but I don't remember anything that fits the description in your second post.

Do they have to be burned? Could they just be "cooked" to death?

jvc · Feb 6, 2009

I'm with alley here. I've been into a local chocolate factory and I can't remember there being anything like this (what you described) in there that would do the trick, especially if you wanted it done quickly. Does it have to be a candy factory? What about a different type? One that has an incinerator? Take the person down to the local crem, they would have the ovens for that type of thing there.

johnnysannie · Feb 6, 2009

My grandfather worked in a candy factor and many years ago when it closed, we were allowed to tour the facility prior to all the fixtures being auctioned off and sold.

There were no ovens; even as a home candymaker, I've never made candy in the oven. THere were, however, huge copper kettles in which the candy mixtures were cooked....very huge.

Smiling Ted · Feb 6, 2009

There's a show called "Unwrapped" on the Food Network, with lots of footage of factories making peanut butter, chocolate syrup, candy...

Do a search on YouTube.

WriteKnight · Feb 6, 2009

ASk the Oompa-Loompah's, they'll know.

Fenika · Feb 6, 2009

In the Herr's Potato Chip factory they have a conveyor belt that runs through an open 'oven'. The chips are cooked in just a few seconds and out they come on the other side. Where the sensors look for burnt or green chips and then accurate air jets blast the bad chips off the belt and onto the floor. And then the chips are sent to the Herr's beef cattle down the road and mixed with their feed in amounts that don't reduce gain or upset the cattle.

Fun, huh?

jgold · Feb 6, 2009

Try this link here for the Hershey's Chocolate Factory.

I don't know about the actual candy-making part of it, but it looks like there are huge ovens when they process the cocoa beans... which you might be able to use.

sirensix · Feb 6, 2009

Well, here's the situation.

The person has to literally catch on fire, she can't just die of heatstroke, boiling in molten chocolate, etc. I won't go into why. But she has to actually catch on fire and the actual fire has to be what kills her.

It has to be in a remote location where no one would notice, so I was thinking an empty/abandoned factory. I guess the electricity still has to be going to the factory, though, or else they couldn't run the oven or what have you.

I was really hoping it could be in an oven, because I am going for this ironic Hansel & Gretel type thing. A bakery or a candy factory would be ideal, to call to mind the gingerbread house situation.

Is this doable? How hot would an oven have to be to make a person actually catch fire? Do any bakery/candymaking ovens or roasters get that hot, or can they, even if they normally do not? And what sort of oven would be large enough? And how long would it take?

Aschenbach · Feb 6, 2009

sirensix said:
The person has to literally catch on fire, she can't just die of heatstroke, boiling in molten chocolate, etc. I won't go into why. But she has to actually catch on fire and the actual fire has to be what kills her.

I think it's pretty hard for a person to catch fire unless they are doused in something flammable, like petrol. I'm not sure an oven would do it. If you leave something in an oven for too long it just tends to char and blacken rather than burst into flame (especially if it's meat).

You can turn a body to ash in a crematorium oven but I believe they burn at furnace-type temparatures, much higher than commercial catering ovens are designed to reach.

CarolSanDiego · Feb 6, 2009

I had to click into this discussion, just out of curiosity. I WISH I worked in a candy factory. How cool would that be.

Ditto on Aschenbach's assessment of a person catching on fire. People don't just catch on fire, even in extreme temperatures. There has to be something flammable on the person, and an open flame. From what I know about melting chocolate, it doesn't get all that hot, and if it does the chocolate is ruined. Not sure about other candy. An oven for roasting cocoa beans, like someone mentioned above, might get hot enough.

FinbarReilly · Feb 6, 2009

I did work in a lollipop factory; there was a huge open flame over which the candy was melted down prior to being poured into the molds, if that helps.

FR

sirensix · Feb 6, 2009

FinbarReilly said:
I did work in a lollipop factory; there was a huge open flame over which the candy was melted down prior to being poured into the molds, if that helps.

FR

Oh, oh, really???? That's wonderful!!!! I'll have to look into the lollipop-making process some more. hehehehe.

Edit after doing some research, not turning up anything too helpful:

What size was the flame? What sort of equipment was on/around it? Can you describe the area in more detail for me? Could a person have fallen into the fire? Or been placed there?

MMcDonald64 · Feb 17, 2009

sirensix said:
Anyone ever worked in one or toured one?

I need a good idea of what the inside of a recently-closed candy factory in Massachusetts would look like. And - yes, once again, my questions get gruesome - I need for there to be some sort of oven that a person could fit inside and be burned to death in relatively quickly. Is that realistic/possible?

*ducks and cringes*

If it sounds like I'm doing some sort of freakish twist on Hansel & Gretel, well, you're not far off.

I have only been to the Jelly Belly factory and don't recall too much about it. However, there's a chocolate factory near the hospital where I work, and a few years ago, a worker fell into a vat of the hot melted chocolate. He was okay, but he could have drowned. The paper reported that he had chocolate everywhere, up his nose, in his ears, etc. Gives new meaning to the phrase, 'death by chocolate'.

I found a link to the story. http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Man_falls_into_70_gallons_of_chocolate

burgy61 · Feb 17, 2009

When I was on the fire department we had to tour the local Ore-Ida plant. They had a conveyor belt which carried the fries through a vat of oil to be deep fried. They wouldn't catch on fire, but they sure would be crispy.

jeseymour · Feb 18, 2009

Then there was the great molasses flood in Boston. Killed 21 people.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_Molasses_Disaster

But if you need fire, that doesn't cover it. :Shrug:

Williebee · Feb 18, 2009

Can it be a flash fire? A number of powders can be made to flame.

For example, it works with non-dairy coffee creamer.

ALERT/WARNING/DISCLAIMER Do NOT try this at home.

If you take a handful of creamer and let it sift through your palm, and hold a flame below (well below), it will flash fire.

On the other hand, my favorite sweets death came from TV's Benson. The Governor lost his wife in a tragic costume party accident. His wife dressed up as the Sugar Plum Fairy, and she used real sugar plums. They arrived at the party by carriage. As she got out, she got too close to the horses and... well, the horses had had a very long day. They were very hungry....

Candy factory!

sirensix

Mediocre Sorceress

Mumut

Well begun is half done...

sirensix

Mediocre Sorceress

alleycat

Still around

jvc

Fearsome Dragon Mod

johnnysannie

Smiling Ted

Ah-HA!

WriteKnight

Arranger Of Disorder

Fenika

jgold

Grinning

sirensix

Mediocre Sorceress

Aschenbach

Moral Marjorie

CarolSanDiego

FinbarReilly

sirensix

Mediocre Sorceress

MMcDonald64

burgy61

jeseymour

Williebee

Capeless, wingless, & yet I fly.