What Flavor Are Swedish Fish Supposed To Be?

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If you've ever tried to guess the exact flavor of Swedish Fish, you've maybe struggled to match it with a specific fruit. Strawberry? Raspberry? Lingonberry? The red color and vaguely familiar taste of this favorite movie candy guide us toward the assumption that they're berry-flavored, but the company has never officially confirmed the specific fruit the candy's flavor is modeled after.

The product description for Swedish Fish sold on Amazon indicates that the candy has a "delicious fruity taste," while the item details section describes the flavor as "Swedish." The ingredients list does not allude to any fruit juices or flavors, noting only "natural and artificial flavors." And the vibrant red color? That comes from Red 40, an artificial coloring derived from petroleum byproducts. On the Swedish Fish website, the company praises the candy's "unique fruity flavor."

One of the untold truths of Swedish Fish is that there are other flavors aside from "red", and these variations actually name fruits on the bag. There's blue raspberry lemonade, as well as watermelon and strawberry GlowUps (which glow under blacklight). Swedish Fish Tails (which offer two flavors in one candy) include combos like watermelon-pineapple and raspberry-mango. The Swedish Fish tropical mix includes piña colada and passion fruit. Swedish Fish Assorted, however, remains as vague as the original. On Amazon, the product is described as having "assorted colors and fruit flavors."

On the r/Nostupidquestions subreddit, one user concludes the mystery perfectly: "At this point, Swedish fish are just Swedish fish flavor." To back this up, Oreo released a cookie flavor with "Swedish Fish flavor creme." For those who still associate the red candy with a particular fruit, cherry, mixed berry, or lingonberry are among the most popular assumptions.

Others have decidedly confirmed that lingonberry is the official flavor — like Candy Is Dandy on YouTube. As the host explains, Swedish candy maker Malaco specifically developed Swedish Fish for American consumers. Lingonberry, which might be unfamiliar to people living in the United States, is a very common fruit in Sweden and the rest of Scandinavia. Think of it as that region's cranberry – it's small, red, and tart. While this theory is certainly logical, the company has never confirmed this,  and Swedish Fish definitely aren't tart.

In the United States, Swedish Fish is now owned by Mondelez International. Looking at the original maker, Malaco's Swedish website (now owned by Cloetta), does not offer any further clues to the flavor of the candy. Swedish Fish are called Pastellfiskar in Sweden (which translates to pastel fish) and are described on Cloetta's website as "fruit-flavored jelly candy." Pastellfiskar are also available in sour and salty black licorice varieties.