Camel Balls gumballs are one of those American novelty sweets that leads entirely with the name printed on the tin - a small, round can with a cartoon camel on it, holding a handful of sour gumballs inside.
The packaging gimmick
Rather than a bag or a blister pack, Camel Balls come in a compact tin that looks closer to a small tin of shoe polish than a sweet packet - a deliberate novelty-gift shape that made it a fixture of American candy stores and gag-gift aisles long before it found an audience in UK sweet shops importing US brands.
What's actually inside
- Format — small, round gumballs, sized to be popped in whole rather than bitten.
- Flavour profile — a sour outer layer gives way to a milder, sweeter bubblegum centre as you chew.
- Positioning — sold as a novelty item first and a gumball second, aimed at the same shelf as other joke-name American imports.
Part of a wider American novelty trend
Camel Balls belongs to a specific category of US candy built around a cheeky name and a small, giftable tin or box - the same shelf logic behind plenty of other imported American novelty sweets that have found a following in the UK over the past couple of decades. If that's the appeal, our American candy and novelty sweets collections are the next stop.
Frequently asked questions
What are Camel Balls?
A novelty American gumball brand sold in a round tin shaped like a can, filled with small sour-then-sweet gumballs, marketed almost entirely on the joke of its name.
What flavour are Camel Balls?
A sharp sour coating that fades into a sweeter, more standard bubblegum flavour once you've chewed through the outer shell.
Why are they sold in a tin?
The tin format is part of the joke - a small can that mimics the packaging of tinned goods, holding a handful of gumballs, and doubles as a novelty gift item rather than a straightforward candy pack.