Mars Cutting King-Size Candy
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Hungry? Starting in 2013 you’ll have to grab a slightly smaller Snickers.
Mars Inc., which makes M&Ms, Twix, Milky Way and many other notable candies, told Reuters that by the end of next year it will not sell any chocolate products that have more than 250 calories.
That means the more-than-500-calorie “king size” Snickers bar will become extinct, along with other “king size” goodies.
Mars told NPR the company planned to replace “king size” candy with bags of two and four smaller bars. According to NPR, the company said it wants to “enable sharing or saving a portion for later.”
“As you taste something, you start being more tempted,” said Dan Ariely, professor of behavioral economics at Duke University. “So the first bite of chocolate is very satisfying, but it creates a really strong craving for the second bite. So if you have four of those little things in a package, there’s a question of whether you would be able to stop after the first or you just take another bite, and another bite, and not stop until you finish the whole package.”
Even the current two-ounce Snickers is not small enough. It will have to downsize from 280 calories, losing at least 10 percent of its current self.
On it’s website, Mars talks about ”responsible snacking” and highlights the fact that currently its “king size” candy is made in two pieces, “one for now and one for later.”
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Yeah- and I’m sure the price WONT be adjusted. Bye Bye sales Mars. Customers arent going to pay $2 for an 8oz Snickers bar
Posted by: Crystal | February 16, 2012, 1:13 pm 1:13 pm
So this is how they are going to make us healthier. Reduce the size of the candy bar, lowering how much we eat, keeping the price the same to higher, thereby reducing the weight we carry in our pockets. Two differenct weight reductions with one single ploy. God Bless America!
Posted by: Give Me a Break | February 16, 2012, 1:23 pm 1:23 pm
Oh for goodness sake. I think if people want to eat a king-sized candy bar and they’re not available they’ll probably just eat two smaller ones.
Our family doesn’t eat much sugar but once in a great while we’ll buy something like a large candy bar then share it. Everyone gets a couple of bites and a nice treat. The reason we do that instead of buying a bag of bite-sized candy bars is because the bite-sized bars result in everyone eventually eating more of it because there are left-overs AND it’s a bunch of unnecessary garbage that has to be disposed of between a bag and all those annoying little wrappers.
Also, this looks like a thinly-veiled excuse to raise the price on their product. I’m still irked over the manufacturers that decided instead of increasing price they would decrease the size of the contents on things like cottage cheese and frozen vegetables.
Posted by: MP | February 16, 2012, 2:02 pm 2:02 pm
Sure, this is a way for them to make more money. But it also has the great side-effect of not increasing our waistlines as much. Ever been to the checkout line? The ONLY thing there are king-sized bars. You can’t get a regular size anything, which is more than you need to be eating to begin with. I agree this won’t fix everything, but every little bit helps.
Posted by: Make Sense | February 16, 2012, 3:22 pm 3:22 pm
Make Sense—lol…sorry, but people will just buy another reducing the size of a candy bar isn’t going to help people lose weight, they are buying a king size because they want a king size..Good lord people it’s not up to the manufacturer to help us eat right.
Posted by: somepoeple02 | February 16, 2012, 3:55 pm 3:55 pm
Good lord people! Get ahold of yourselves. They are a candy maker and never said they were going to fix America’s obesity problem. It’s not like they were ever going to switch over to making only healthy food.
Enough with your comments about the costs. They already sell “normal” size Snickers so it’s not where they are going to all of a sudden start making smaller candy bars and selling at the same price as the king bars.
It’s a cool option that they have decided to pursue. Just like Ford did many years ago by getting rid of the over the top Expedition and GM did with stopping the Hummer brand. Those companies never said that was the only way to stop the energy crisis.
Posted by: David | February 16, 2012, 3:59 pm 3:59 pm
they can make their candies or chocolates less calories if they cut sugar content in them in half. they put too much sugar in their candies, and i don’t even want to touch any of that!
Posted by: sabaniz | February 16, 2012, 8:35 pm 8:35 pm
Yeah I’m too stupid to skip the king size snickers bar. Thanks for only giving me the option of taking a regular sized snickers.
Posted by: Jonathan | February 16, 2012, 10:49 pm 10:49 pm
The reason people are fat is because they are lazy! They will not lower the price. It’s all about making a buck…They think were stupid and actually think this is saving us! Well if thats the case stop making the product then. Haven’t people realized the quanity of bread has decreased but the price has gone up! Same with many other products! Its alllll about money!!!!! Sorry I want what I pay for just like anything else…If the chubby kid wants a candy bar he will eat more than one.
Posted by: michelle | February 17, 2012, 4:31 am 4:31 am
CAn you say GREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD??????
Posted by: bob | February 18, 2012, 1:54 pm 1:54 pm
I am (NOT) amazed this article doesn’t mention that it was Michelle Obama who caused this. The “Nanny State” is incompatible with personal freedom and liberty!
Posted by: Ryan | February 19, 2012, 4:39 pm 4:39 pm
What ABC news “forgot” to enter in this article is that they signed “Michelle Obamas” agreement to cut king size candies. The government is starting to control our lives and now our food? This is ridiculous. Welcome to the USSA people. ABC news is so liberal.
Posted by: Matt | February 19, 2012, 6:48 pm 6:48 pm
It’s not about us eating healthy. It’s about them deciding what is right for us. I eat quite a bit healthier than I used to, but if I want a snack, King Size or otherwise, it’s nice to have the choice to do so. Mars has just made sure that I get said snack from another company. Yes, they have good tasting candy bars, but I refuse to support their want to make the decision for me. Mars, you have lost this customer, and many others that I know of. Great marketing scheme. Hope it works out for ya…
Posted by: Jeremy | February 22, 2012, 12:39 pm 12:39 pm
This is so stupid. Candy bars? How about all the fat people are eating with fast food. What is the government going to do~shut down all fast food restaurants? Hey, I would be more in agreement with THAT!!! How about all the commercials on TV about alcohol? Kids are being taught at extremely young ages, that they can’t have fun unless they drink while playing. They have singled out cigarettes and no commercials about them, but sing praises about drinking on TV. Michelle Obie, needs to get her priorities right first. Her girls can’t eat king size candy bars, but if I were her (which I thank God I’m NOT!!) I’d be doing something about the alcohol/fun thing before candy bars. Oh, I forgot~there is too much “drinking” in the government along with the big MONEY that comes from it. ONE thing is clear here…you can keep drinking and getting behind the wheel of a car and kill someone, but don’t smoke and God forbid, don’t eat a king size candy bar!! Just the fact that the government is taking away OUR CHOICE to choose little or big size candy bars is enough for me not to EVER eat another one!!!
Posted by: Barbara | April 19, 2012, 7:19 pm 7:19 pm