Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the shelf life of your products?
A: We think you'll love our products so much you will have a hard time not consuming them immediately! However, if you can resist the temptation, you will be happy to know that our items will remain fresh longer.
Hard candies / lollipops are made fresh and do not contain added preservatives, so if not consuming immediately, store in an air tight container under cool temperatures up to 4 weeks for best quality and flavor. Properly stored candies can last up to one year, but may lose color and flavor, and crystallize over time.
Jams ship with a shelf life of at least 6 months. For best quality, store unopened jars in a dry, cool location. Opened jars should be stored in the refrigerator and consumed within 1 month of opening.
Sealed, glass jar infusion kits and unopened infusion pouches can last up to 1 year, when stored in a cool, dry location away from sunlight. However, it is recommended to use within 6 months.
Q: Where do you ship?
A: Sweet Kee's, LLC is a cottage food business operating under home processor registration by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets. As such, we are unable to ship to addresses outside of New York State. If you live outside of New York state but in the New York metropolitan area, we encourage you to visit us in person at any of the markets and live events that we participate in throughout the year, ship to a NY address that you can pick up from, or you may place an order to be picked up at the Jefferson Valley Mall, which is our official pick up location - prior arrangement of pickup date/time is required.
Q: Do you have a retail store?
A: While we have previously participated in retail concepts, we do not currently have a permanent retail space. We do however regularly explore brand-aligned temporary and permanent retail partnerships and pop-ups for our products. Send us a note at admin@sweetkees.com if you would like to offer Sweet Kee's products at your location.
During the summer season, you can find Sweet Kee's products at the Arlington Farmers Market on Thursday afternoons (select dates for 2026). We also occasionally pop up at other area markets and at Matters Coffee in Croton-on-Hudson. Past market participation includes the Kingston Farmers Market, the Poughkeepsie Waterfront Market, the Heart of the Hudson Valley Farmers Market in Milton, and the Garden Street Farm Market in Poughkeepsie.
Q: Are all of your flavors available year round or do they change?
A: Our core (evergreen) flavors and varietals are offered year round, although we review our offerings periodically and occasionally make adjustments based on demand.
Core candy flavors include: Citrus Blossom, Fruit Punch, Green Apple, Peach Mango, Salted Caramel, Strawberry, Watermelon, Champagne, Pina Colada, and Strawberry Margarita
Core jam flavors include: Peach Berry, Strawberry Mango and Tropical
Core infusion varietals include: Red Wine Sangria, White Wine Sangria, Strawberry Peach Margarita, Spicy Pineapple Margarita, Hibiscus Rum Punch, Bourbon Punch, and Blueberry Lemon Martini
In addition, we offer a variety of seasonal and limited-availability offerings across all of our product lines. Seasonal flavors can sell out quickly, so if you see one that you like we highly recommend ordering it sooner rather than later! Examples of past seasonal offerings include Passionfruit, Eggnog, and Banana lollipops, Peppermint candies, Cherry Almond, Apple Pie, and Blueberry Lemon jams, and Spiced Ginger Pear Martini, Dragon Blood Sangria, and Smoked Cherry Maple Cocktail infusion kits.
Q: Are your products gluten-free, vegan, etc? Do they contain alcohol?
A: All of our plain lollipops are gluten-free, vegan (honey flavor excluded), halal-friendly, dairy-free and made with Kosher ingredients. Lollipops containing inclusions may not meet these dietary restrictions. Our core (evergreen) lollipop flavors are free of FD&C dyes, with the exception of Watermelon. Our jams, peppermint shot glasses, and most infusion kit flavors are gluten-free, vegan, and dairy-free.
While all of our products are considered non-alcoholic, select candy flavors (Peach Mango, Pina Colada, and Watermelon) may contain trace amounts of alcohol, which is used as a carrier in candy flavoring. For our Ring Lollipops, alcohol-free flavoring alternatives are used for Peach Mango and Pina Colada.
Infusion kits do not contain any alcohol. They are custom mixes formulated for you to add your choice of alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverage and create your own infused beverage creation.
For specific dietary information, questions, or concerns, please contact us.
Q: Are your lollipops made with honey? Do you offer sugar-free options?
A: All of our lollipops are made from cane sugar. We use honey as an ingredient in our honey lollipop, however these treats do still contain cane sugar. While we don’t currently offer sugar-free lollipops, we continuously test new market ingredients to find options that meet our standards for taste and candy production. If you are looking for lower sugar treats, we highly recommend our small-batch jams, which use a lower-sugar recipe to allow the fruit to shine. We also recommend our beverage infusion kits, which are sweetened with premium dried fruits. Select flavors may contain cane sugar cubes that are easily removable.
Q: Can I place an order now if I don't need it immediately? And how much lead time do you need?
A: Absolutely! In fact, we encourage you to order early especially if you intend to order large quantities or customized items (you may order up to 6 months in advance). Ordering early ensures that we can fulfill your exact order request, and allows us to streamline planning. Simply indicate in your order notes when you would like to receive the order or when you intend to pick up (for pick up orders). Your order will be made fresh based on the desired receive-by date or pickup date provided.
Made-to-order items offered for sale on our website typically ship within 2-3 business days, however custom orders, orders with extensive add-ons, orders with off-season flavor requests, and/or large bulk quantity orders may require additional lead time. We recommend placing large bulk and/or customized orders 2-3 weeks in advance of your desired receive-by date however we are usually able to accommodate shorter lead times if needed.
Q: Can you accommodate bulk orders for parties, weddings or other events?
A: Yes, we love parties and events! For your convenience, our Parties & Events page lists a selection of bulk 1.5" and 2" lollipops in frequently ordered quantities (25/50), in addition to bulk quantities of infusion kits and our most popular specialty lollipops. An overview of our candy packages can also be found in our online gallery.
For other bulk items, quantities or configurations, or for a copy of our events catalog, simply email us at admin@sweetkees.com, or use the Contact form under the Info & Contact tab to receive a custom quote. Provide as much detail as possible about your needs so we can provide you with the most relevant information.
Q: Why are your candies not colored?
A: We seek to minimize the use of FD&C dyes in our candies and minimize unnecessary ingredients, which means that most of our candies are light in color and translucent in nature. This is the result of natural coloration without dyes. With the exception of Watermelon, all of our evergreen candy flavors are free of FD&C dyes. We occasionally use natural dyes to add color to seasonal candies that are available for limited periods of time. Our confetti nonpareil sprinkles and holiday sprinkles are made with plant dyes, and do not contain any artificial colors or high-fructose corn syrup. We offer a few add-ons, and top-selling seasonal candies and mints, that may contain FD&C dyes. For questions on the ingredient contents of any of our items, send us a note using the Contact form under the Info & Contact tab or email us directly at admin@sweetkees.com.