National Sprinkle Day – July 23, 2024

History of National Sprinkle Day

Sprinkles can be dated back to, at least, the 18th century when they were referred to as Nonpareils. The idea of the modern sprinkles dates back to 1913 when Dutch confectionaire, Erven H. de Jong created something by the name of ‘hagelslag.’ The latter was intended to be used as a topping for bread and butter, of all things.

Hagelslag eventually made their way to the New World, to the Tri-State and New England region by the 1930s. This was the beginning of their rainbow-colored fame. Hagelslag received a facelift for the American public. Known as ‘Jimmies’ in the US, they began being used as a cake topping. There began to spring up, however, feuds over the true ownership of the creation. A Pennsylvanian factory, for instance, began claiming that it had invented America’s beloved Jimmies. Sprinkles began their career as an ice cream topping in the 1940s. The first use of sprinkles as an ice-cream topping has been traced back to Dr. Edward Bringham. He began offering rainbow sprinkles as a topping option for ice cream cones, charging an additional penny to raise money for The Jimmy Fund.

Today, sprinkles can be found all across the globe. They are called ‘hagelslag’ in The Netherlands, Jimmies in Boston and Philadelphia, meses in Indonesia, and ‘muizenstrontjes’ (‘mouse droppings’) in Belgium. Regardless of the name, sprinkles have become an inseparable part of the modern palette.