Call off that New Year’s diet: It’s officially Girl Scout cookie season.
Starting Wednesday, little entrepreneurs in green vests and badges will be selling their limited-edition treats — including the first new cookie in two years.
Salty-sweet Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies join the lineup for 2019. This newbie also adds another gluten-free option to the Girl Scouts’ menu (2015’s Toffee-Tastic is also gluten-free). Expect to find all the classic flavors on roadside tables, too, such as Thin Mints, S’mores and Samoas (also known as Caramel deLites, depending on where you’re from).
Don’t see any cookies on your corner? Download the official Cookie Finder app to locate an in-person seller near you. These enduring sweets can also be ordered online from local chapters in select areas.
Prices vary by city and state, as the 1.8 million Girl Scouts sell at prices determined by local troop councils, but the gluten-free options are sold at a slightly higher price than the average $3.50 to $5 cookies to offset higher production costs.
The Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie arrives at a time when gluten-free food is increasingly mainstream. The no-longer-niché market is projected to be valued at $7.59 billion by 2020, according to Statista.
The Girl Scouts of the USA program moves about 200 million boxes of cookies to earn nearly $800 million during each January-April selling season, a national representative told Moneyish.
Not only is the cookie program billed as a “powerful entrepreneurship incubator for the next generation of female leaders,” but Girl Scouts also use their earnings to power troop experiences, including travel, outdoor adventure, and science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) programming.
Many girls invest the money toward impactful community projects right in their own backyards, from supporting animal shelters and food banks to working with local and state legislators to change laws, according to GirlScouts.org. And the proceeds stay local, meaning that when you purchase Girl Scout cookies, you are giving back to your wider community and investing in the future of female leadership.
Doesn’t that sound sweet?