The beginnings of M&M's

In the 1930s, large parts of the United States suffered from an extreme heat wave. Forest Mars was faced with a problem: its chocolate was melting - and with it its sales. Soldiers in the Spanish Civil War provided him with the solution to his problem. They had chocolate buttons with them that were surrounded by a layer of sugar and therefore didn't melt.

M&M's, also called MDM or MnM's, were first introduced in 1941 USA sold and initially distributed primarily to soldiers in World War II. They were well received here because they kept their promise not to melt, which also meant they were easy to transport. After the end of the war, popularity and popularity increased significantly.

M&M's have also been available in Europe since 1975. In 1976, orange M&M's were added. In the same year the red ones were removed because a red dye (amaranth - which, however, was not used in the M&M's at the time) led to public debate - in 1987, due to high demand, red M&M's were added to the color mix again. These currently contain the dye E162 which is obtained from beetroot. Mars is currently removing titanium dioxide (E171) from its confectionery portfolio across Europe. Continue reading...