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When you bite into a Thin Mint, you probably aren't wondering where it comes from. (The Girl Scouts, of course.) But wait, there are two bakers. And they make two very different Thin Mints: One is crunchier, more minty. The other is richer with a smooth chocolate coating.
Where you buy determines which ones you get. Orange County gets the crunchier Thin Mints, while Los Angeles gets the smoother ones. Dallas gets Samoas, but Fort Worth gets Caramel deLites. Most of Florida eats Tagalongs, but Orlando gets Peanut Butter Patties.
The new S'mores cookies are also different between bakers. One's covered in chocolate; the other sandwiches fudge and frosting between two cookies.
Which cookies are you eating? Your local Girl Scouts decide.
The Girl Scouts this year are celebrating the 100th anniversary of the first known sale of Girl Scout cookies, which are sold to help girls learn people skills and how to manage money, as well as to help fund philanthropic causes and goals such as field trips and camp visits. Initially, the cookies sold were homemade, but the Girl Scouts turned to commercial bakers by the 1930s.
The Girl Scout council for each ZIP Code is based on the council finder search tool on www.girlscouts.org. Bakers for each local council were determined by what was listed on each council's website.
Updated Feb. 3, 2017: The video and map were updated with the current bakers for councils.
Updated Feb. 5, 2016: The video and map were updated with the current bakers for councils. Some ZIP codes also changed.
Photos by Anne Cusack and Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times
Sources: Times reporting, Girl Scouts of the United States of America, ABC Bakers, Little Brownie Bakers