M&M's have been around since 1941, but do you know how they started? As you think about which color - or plain or peanut on the inside - you favor, let's take a walk down memory lane.
According to company history, after seeing soldiers carrying Smarties, chocolate pellets protected by a shell from keeping them from melting, during the Spanish Civil War in the 1930's, Forrest Mars Senior, son of the Mars Company founder, pitched the idea of the candy we know today as M&M's. Manufacturing of the candy began at a factory in New Jersey in 1941. Mars sourced chocolate with the help of Bruce Murrie, the son of a Hershey executive, and as a result, the name of the candy came from both men's names: Mars and Murrie.
Initially, the candy was only sold to the U.S. Army, and after World War II ended and soldiers returned home, they were well acquainted with M&M's, which helped make the candy a popular snack in the post-war years.
In 1949, the famous tagline, "Melts in your mouth, not in your hand" was released. In 1950, a black "M" was printed onto M&M's to give them a unique look, and this was changed to a white "M" in 1954. And during the 1980's, M&M's went on sale in Canada, Europe, Australia, Japan, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom.
Here's an interesting fact: Since it's very easy to eat M&M's, the are the most consumed chocolate in outer space. Astronauts love M&M's!
And here's another interesting fact: M&M's were the official snack of the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
M&M's may be such a popular sweet snack due to its marketing and advertising humor. Many of the colors have recognizable personalities, and some even appear during expensive Super Bowl ads.
And in 2023, the world seemed to go crazy with M&M news. Prior to the game, the brand announced that actress Maya Rudolph would take over for the colored spokescandies, who were taking a break from their duties, which included participating in an ad during the Super Bowl. In the days leading up to the Super Bowl, the name of the candy was changed, the inside of the candy was changed, and to be honest, it was hard to keep up with all the drama. But then, at the end of the Super Bowl, the spokescandies held a news conference, and all was right with the world: The candies/characters/brand ambassadors announced their return.
Image Credit: M&M's.
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