Census Bureau releases candy, flower data

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WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 (UPI) -- The U.S. Census Bureau marked Valentine's Day by revealing 1,155 places in the United States manufacture chocolate and 16,182 shops specialize in flowers.

The bureau said census data from 2010 shows 1,155 businesses produced chocolate and cocoa products in 2010 while 409 companies focused on the production of non-chocolate confectionary products.

The figures said shipments of chocolate and cocoa products from U.S. companies amounted to $13.5 billion in 2011.

The average U.S. citizen consumed 24.7 pounds of candy during 2010, the bureau said.

The figures also revealed there were 16,182 florist businesses in 2010 and $365,453,189 was spent on fresh cut roses in 2011.

Meanwhile, there were 23,739 jewelry stores in the United States in 2010, the bureau said, with $2.66 billion worth of merchandise being sold at such stores during the month of February last year.