Why Some Trader Joe's Shoppers Are Not Impressed With Its Organic Jelly Beans

If you want to up your Easter basket game this year, you might want to consider a Trader Joe's run to pick up their Gourmet Jelly Beans. They come in an impressive variety of 18 flavors, and Trader Joe's supplier somehow manages to make this highly processed candy with natural flavors and colors. Trader Joe's Gourmet Jelly Beans also scored the highest-ever rating at the jelly bean review site A Boy and His Beans, getting a 30 out of 35.

Opinions in the social media sphere are mixed, however. The Instagram account @traderjoeslist got a lot of reaction when they posted about the gourmet jelly beans on April 1 (via Instagram).

Trader Joe's natural jelly beans did get some love. "I've been snacking on these for two weeks and now there aren't any left to put in the kids' Easter baskets," one commenter said. Someone even had love for what is often mentioned as the least popular jelly bean flavor. "I'm gonna be weird af and unapologetically state that licorice is my all time fav flavor," a commenter said.

On the other hand, some Trader Joe's shoppers were not impressed with Trader Joe's Gourmet Jelly Beans. More than one commenter under the @traderjoeslist Instagram post had three words for them: "Not a fan." Wedding photographer Kait Bailey didn't hold back in her comment: "TJ's jelly beans are trash." Bailey did follow up with some positive spin, however: "TJ's nails so many things, but these are not one of them."

When a jelly bean assortment comes in 18 flavors, people are bound to find some dislikes in the bag. Honestly, more hate than love was shown for the licorice flavor. The @traderjoeslist account admitted to giving the banana split flavor a hard pass. The reviewer at A Boy and His Beans skips the coconut flavor. Then there are those who feel that 18 flavors aren't enough. "I wish they had pear like Jelly Belly," a commenter said.

For one commenter, taste wasn't the issue so much as the jelly beans' "huge carbon footprint." Instagram user @myhappyeverything didn't sound happy to read on a photo of the back of the bag (also posted by @traderjoeslist) that Trader Joe's Gourmet Jelly Beans are "from a tiny little candy factory nestled in the Irish countryside."

"Talk about gourmet!" @myhappyeverything joked. That little Irish factory might see if it can work out a deal to exchange the licorice flavor in their black jelly beans for Guinness flavor. It couldn't hurt.