The Jelly Belly factory gives Fairfield a sweet factory-tour stop

Fairfield sits between the Bay Area, Sacramento, wine country, Travis Air Force Base, and I-80 travel. The Jelly Belly factory turns that crossroads into something families remember. It is a candy stop with a tour lane, a visitor center, and a little factory theater.

Jelly Belly moved to Fairfield in 1986 and opened its doors to tours. The self-guided tour now runs along an upper quarter-mile lane. Exhibits and videos show how the candy is made. Kids and adults both get plenty to point at.

The details are part of the fun. The company notes that it makes 1,680 Jelly Belly beans per second. The tour also shows how a food factory can welcome visitors safely. You can watch from above and learn through displays while staying out of the work space.

Look up hours, ticket rules, and production notices before making it the main reason for a trip. Weekday mornings are the better bet if you want to see active candy making. Weekends can still work because videos show the process when the floor is quiet. Either way, Fairfield gets a stop that is easy to explain: candy, color, a tour, and a reason to pull off the highway.