This article is written by a student writer from the Spoon University at UCF chapter.
Recognizable on the grocery shelves for their bright, colorful packaging and dozens of flavors and varieties to satisfy every type of chocolate lover, M&Ms hold a special place in my heart as well as in those both in the country and around the world. The iconic candy turns 75 years old this year, so read on to find out more about this iconic treat and celebrate the M imprinted candy.
1. M&Ms were invented by Forrest Mars, inspired by a lentil-shaped candy he saw soldiers eating during a visit behind the lines in the Spanish Civil War.
2. M&Ms are named after the Mars and Murrie families
3. Before Hershey and Mars became rivals, William F. R. Murrie’s company Hershey supplied the chocolate Mars needed to make the candy.
4. The movie E.T., almost used M&Ms but Mars’ insecurity led to the choosing of Reese’s peanut butter candies instead.
5. M&Ms Peanut Chocolate Candies were introduced In 1954.
7. The letter “M” was printed on the candy in black ink until 1954; now it’s printed in white.
8. The famous slogan “The milk chocolate that melts in your mouth, not in your hand” and the M&Ms brand characters were trademarked in 1954.
9. M&Ms happen to be the most common eaten chocolate in NASA’s space program
10. In 1972, the colorful characters first appeared on packaging, helping with M&Ms brand awareness.
11. Green’s shoe-wear, her Go-Go boots, was chosen due to early drawings of the character showing her with less than flattering ankles.
12. She joined the M&Ms pack as a character in 1997, while Red, Blue, and Yellow had been introduced back in 1995
13. Ms. Brown joined in 2012, and is voiced by Vanessa Williams
14. M&M’s Chocolate Candies are made in New Jersey and Tennessee, and became internationally available in the 1980s
15. Music artists Zedd and Aloe Blacc collaborated on a remake of the song “Candyman” in honor of the M&Ms anniversary.
16. Over 400 million M&Ms are produced each day.
17. In 2006, M&M’s became the official chocolate of NASCAR
18. M&Ms are also the one of the many official food sponsors of the NFL
19. Of course, there have been many limited edition and holiday combination bags released in the market for consumption in different sizes and fillings.
20. M&M flavor “BOO-terscotch” was recently released for the fall season, with some Harry Potter fans nicknaming it the “Butterbeer M&Ms”
21. MEGA M&Ms in both milk chocolate and peanut varieties were introduced in 2014
22. The Crispy variety, a limited edition from 1998, was brought back by popular demand and is now a part of the regular line up
23. Pretzel M&Ms were released in 2010, with Orange becoming its spokescandy
24. Blue M&Ms weren’t always a thing. In
1995 a marketing event asked Americans to vote on a new color to appear in
the traditional M&M’s Chocolate Candies mix.
25. M&Ms just may become a thing of the past in our favorite desserts and fast food products
26. The candies are number one in Florida, Hawaii, and Kansas when it comes to Halloween
27. This year, the brand ran a “Vote For Your Favorite Peanut” contest, featuring the varities coffee nut, chili nut and honey nut
28. Also this year, the caramel variety was introduced, and is set to make its debut in May 2017.
