A beloved product, aimed mainly at children, has doubled in price at 7-Eleven stores across the country.

The news came as quite the shock to CBC's Paul Karchut when he went to pick out $1 worth recently — a ritual he has had since childhood.

"I didn't know what to do," said the Calgary Eyeopener producer. "I actually left the candy on the counter and walked out. It wasn't out of anger or protest — just total dumb-foundedness."

Picking out five cent candies is a tradition, and it's uniquely Canadian.

Candies are sold by weight in Europe, and five and dime stores in the U.S. have nearly disappeared.

So five cent candies actually are a tourist attraction for some Americans, like these teenagers who posted this gleeful video about their experience buying candies on YouTube.

Price hasn't changed in 35 years

"7-Eleven has absorbed cost increases over the years that we simply cannot absorb any longer," said company spokesperson Laurie Smith.

- Candace Nordhus with Tosuta International

The convenience store chain gets its candies from Tosuta International, a Vancouver-based company that imports the sweet treats mainly from Europe.

Tosuta International calls Canada's style of selling candies a piece count. In Europe they can increase prices gradually without anybody noticing because they sell candy by weight.

Here, the price per unit — five cents — hasn't changed since Tosuta started 35 year ago.

Candace Nordhus, Tosuta International's vice-president of sales, says she can't think of another product that has stayed the same price for as long as the five cent candy.

"It's mind-blowing, I'm telling you," she said. "The cost continually changes for us. Buying it year over year is always changing, the price increase of sugar and material has really changed. I mean plastic has changed, labels — everything we do — labour. It will be worthwhile in the end because there is not a lot of margin in our business when you are selling five cent candies."

Penny candies

But the size of the candies have remained the same. Tosuta International staff say their standard weight per candy is four grams, and always has been. Just the shapes have changed.

So will other companies follow suit? The other big player in Canadian convenience stores is Couche Tard.

It's the Quebec company that operates Mac's stores here in Western Canada. A call around to local stores in Calgary confirms that they are still selling candies for five cents, and store managers say no directives from their higher ups suggest their pricing will change in the near future.

"I haven't heard from any other customers at this time that they are going to be doing a price increase," said Nordhus.

Of course, this isn't unprecedented. The sweets were once known as penny candy, but inflation caught up with them and we saw a rise in those little gems as well — which, of course, leads to stories of, "I used to be able to buy a whole bag of candy for a nickel" at family reunions.

If you really want your penny candy fix still, you can head to the Maritimes where the tiny little candies are still sold for just one cent.