First time it’s not in Bonn Haribo chestnut exchange moves to Grafschaft

BONN · After 80 years, the traditional Haribo chestnut exchange will no longer be in Bonn. People who want to turn in chestnuts for sweets will need to go to the new company headquarters at the beginning of October.

An era comes to an end. After 80 years, there will be no more Haribo chestnut exchange in Bonn. For those who want to exchange their fruits of the forest for Haribo sweets, they will need to make a trip to Grafschaft instead of Bad Godesberg. Haribo announced that the event will take place on October 5th and 6th at their new administrative headquarters in Grafschaft, about a half-hour drive south of Bonn.

How the exchange works

Here’s how the exchange works: For every ten chestnuts brought in, one sweet is calculated. If you bring in acorns, the ratio is five acorns for one piece of confectionary. People bring in the acorns and chestnuts they have collected and go home with Haribo sweets. Meanwhile, the acorns and chestnuts are used for feeding animals in the wild on a private hunting grounds.

For generations, the initiative had taken place in Bonn but that property has now been sold and the remaining Haribo production location in Kessenich is too small for the more than 10,000 people who participate in the chestnut exchange. “Besides that, the initiative has always taken place at the Haribo headquarters,” said a spokesperson.

Some kids will already be back to school when the exchange takes place but it will run until 4 pm on both days so everyone has a chance to get in line. For those who are keen to get an early start, the exchange will begin at 7 am on both days. The new location is: Joseph-von-Fraunhofer-Straße 25 in Grafschaft.

Cult status and chaos

Part of what led to the chestnut exchange attaining cult status was its location in the middle of the city. For two days, it was an extraordinary situation with cars parked on all the side streets near the former Haribo headquarters. Most residents took it in good humor or even tried to make a business model out of the situation. But the traffic and parking was definitely chaotic. At the new location, the traffic situation will clearly be more relaxed.

(Orig. text: Alexander Hertel, Rüdiger Franz; Translation: ckloep)

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