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M&M's facts for kids
This page is about the candy. For other uses, see M&M.
Logo used since 2022
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| Owner | Mars, Incorporated |
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| Country | United States |
| Introduced | September 10, 1941 |
| Related brands | Minstrels, Revels, Treets |
| Markets | Worldwide (over 100 countries) |
M&M's are small, colorful chocolate candies. They are covered in a hard sugar shell. Each candy has a white letter "m" printed on one side. The inside of an M&M can be different things. The first M&M's had a plain milk chocolate filling. Later, Peanut M&M's were created. They have a peanut covered in milk chocolate, then the candy shell. Many other types have been made over time. Some popular kinds include peanut butter, almond, pretzel, crispy, dark chocolate, and caramel. M&M's are a main product of Mars, Incorporated.
These candies first came out in the United States in 1941. By 2003, M&M's were sold in over 100 countries. They come in many different colors, and some colors have changed over the years. The idea for candy-coated chocolate may have come from Forrest Mars Sr.. He might have seen British-made Smarties during the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939). The hard sugar coating helped the chocolate not melt in warm weather. This led to their famous slogan: "the milk chocolate that melts in your mouth, not in your hand."
A regular milk chocolate M&M weighs about 0.91 grams. It has about 4.7 calories. All M&M's of the same type taste the same, no matter their color. For example, a red milk chocolate M&M tastes the same as a green one.
Contents
History of M&M's
How M&M's Began (1940s–1970s)
Forrest Mars Sr. got the idea for M&M's in the 1930s. He saw soldiers eating British Smarties, which were chocolate pieces with a hard sugar shell. This shell stopped the chocolate from melting. Mars received a special permit for his own candy-making process in 1941. Production started that same year in Newark, New Jersey. The company was first called M&M Limited. The two "M"s stand for Forrest E. Mars Sr. and Bruce Murrie. Bruce Murrie was the son of the president of The Hershey Company. Murrie had a 20% share in the product. This deal allowed M&M's to be made with Hershey chocolate. Hershey controlled chocolate supplies during that time.
The first big customer for M&M's was the United States Army. Soldiers could carry the candies in hot places without them melting. During World War II, M&M's were sold only to the military. This high demand made the company grow. They moved to bigger factories in Newark and later in Hackettstown, New Jersey. A second factory opened in Cleveland, Tennessee, in 1978. Today, M&M's are made in both New Jersey and Tennessee.
In 1949, the brand started using its famous slogan: "The milk chocolate that melts in your mouth, not in your hand." In 1950, a black "M" was printed on the candies. This made them unique. The "M" color was changed to white in 1954.
Peanut M&M's were introduced in 1954. At first, they only came in a tan color. In 1960, M&M's added yellow, red, and green colors.
Peanut M&M's were introduced in 1954.
In 1976, the color orange was added. It replaced red M&M's. This happened because of public worries about certain red dyes. Even though M&M's used a different, safer red dye, people were still concerned. Red M&M's were brought back in 1987.
Growing Around the World (1980s)
In the 1980s, M&M's started selling in many new countries. These included Australia, Canada, Europe, Japan, and the United Kingdom.
Almond-centered M&M's were available again in 1988. They were sold for a limited time during Christmas and Easter. By 1992, they became a regular product.
Also in 1986, M&M's launched special holiday candies. Easter candies had bunny, chick, and egg shapes. Christmas candies had pine tree, bell, and candle shapes. By 1993, these holiday shapes were replaced with the standard "M" logo.
New Flavors and Colors (1990s)
In 1991, Peanut Butter M&M's were released. These candies have peanut butter inside the chocolate shell. They come in the same colors as other M&M's.
In 1995, the tan M&M's were stopped. They were replaced by blue M&M's. To introduce the new color, a special TV show promoted the blue M&M.
During the 1990s, Europe started using the M&M's brand name. It replaced older candy names like "Treats" and "Bonitos." In 1996, Mars introduced "M&M's Minis." These are smaller candies often sold in plastic tubes. In 1999, Crispy M&M's were released. They were a bit bigger than milk chocolate M&M's and had a crispy wafer center. Crispy M&M's were stopped in the United States in 2005 but came back in 2015. They were always available in Europe and Australia.
New Flavors and Re-releases (2000s–Present)
In 2001, dulce de leche M&M's were tried in some areas. This flavor was not very popular and was stopped by 2003.
Many other M&M flavors came out in the 2010s. These include Pretzel M&M's (2010), Coffee Nut M&M's (2016), Caramel M&M's (2017), English Toffee M&M's (2019), and Hazelnut Spread M&M's (2019).
Other M&M products were also launched. A chocolate bar called M-Azing came out in 2004 and again in 2013. Larger candies called "Mega M&M's" were briefly released in 2007. They became a regular product in 2014. M&M cookies started selling in the United States in 2016. M&M chocolate blocks were released in Australia in 2017.
In 2020, Fudge Brownie M&M's were released in the United States. On September 28, 2022, purple M&M's were introduced. They also got a new cartoon character, Purple.
Marketing M&M's
Marketing has greatly helped the M&M's brand. Computer-animated characters, fun stories, and different products have made M&M's well-known.
In 1982, Mars did not want M&M's in the movie E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. But a rival company, Hershey, used their Reese's Pieces instead. Reese's Pieces are similar to M&M's but have a peanut butter filling. When the movie became a huge hit, sales of Reese's Pieces went up a lot.
Marketing Campaigns
From 1982 to 1987, the M&M's slogan was "All the World Loves M&M's." It had a TV song.
In 1995, M&M's held a "Color Campaign" contest. People voted for a new M&M color: purple, blue, or pink. Blue won with 54% of the votes. The news of the winning color was shown on many TV news programs. The company even lit the Empire State Building in blue. This campaign brought a lot of free attention to M&M's.
In 1996, Mars made a Christmas ad. The Red and Yellow M&M characters met Santa Claus. This ad was very popular. It has been shown every December since then, becoming their longest-running TV commercial.
In 1998, M&M's were called "The Official Candy of the New Millennium." This was because "MM" is the Roman numeral for 2000. This was also when "rainbow M&M's" came out. These were multi-colored and had different fillings.
In 2000, "Plain" M&M's were renamed "Milk Chocolate" M&M's. Pictures of the candies were added to the packaging.
Joint Marketing Campaigns
In 1990, Mars Snackfood US became a sponsor for NASCAR races. M&M's have sponsored many race car drivers over the years. These include Kyle Busch, who won championships in 2015 and 2019. Mars stopped sponsoring Busch in 2022.
M&M's World London
In 2005, M&M's had an "mPire" promotion. This was linked to the Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith movie. Dark chocolate M&M's were offered for the first time.
In 2004, M&M's had a Shrek 2 promotion. M&M's were sold in "ogre-sized" versions, which were 65% larger. They came in swamp/ogre colors. In 2005, Mars added "Mega M&M's." These were 55% larger than regular M&M's. They came in milk chocolate and peanut flavors. The colors for Mega M&M's were changed to less bright ones.
In 2006, Dark Chocolate M&M's came back in a purple package. In 2007, Dark Chocolate Peanut M&M's followed. Also in 2006, the company tested White Chocolate M&M's. This was for their Pirates of the Caribbean promotion.
Also in 2006, M&M's became the official chocolate of NASCAR.
In 2007, M&M's released a limited-edition raspberry flavor. Also that year, M&M's made a 50-foot statue of a smiling Lady Liberty M&M. This was to start a campaign where people could create their own M&M characters online.
In 2008, two limited-edition flavors were introduced: "Wildly Cherry" and "Mint Crisp." The Mint Crisp M&M's were linked to the movie Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
M&M's also launched "M&M's Premiums" in 2008. These came in flavors like chocolate almond and triple chocolate. They did not have a hard candy shell.
In 2009, M&M's launched a limited-edition "Strawberried Peanut Butter" flavor. This was linked to the movie Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. Also, "Coconut M&M's" were released as a limited edition. They became a permanent item in 2010.
In April 2010, M&M's launched a new Pretzel variety. In November 2011, Mars released a limited edition M&M's Cinnamon Milk Chocolate for Christmas.
In 2012, M&M's released two new Dark Chocolate flavors: Raspberry and Mint. Also, a White Chocolate flavor was released for Easter. In 2012, Peanut M&M's in the UK came in special "Red, White and Blues only" packs. This was for the country's Diamond Jubilee and the 2012 Summer Olympics.
Since 1988, special red, white, and blue Presidential M&M's have been given as gifts to guests of the President of the United States. One side of the box has the presidential seal. The other side has an M&M's character holding the American flag.
There are special M&M's World shops in places like Las Vegas, Orlando, New York, London, and Shanghai. Several M&M's-themed video games have also been made.
M&M's Characters
Early M&M's ads in 1954 showed two talking M&M characters. One was plain, and one was peanut. They were shown diving into a pool of chocolate.
In 1995, M&M's introduced new computer-animated "spokescandies" in their TV ads. These characters were made to seem more grown-up than most food mascots. They include:
- Red: He is often cynical and sarcastic. He is the mascot for milk chocolate, peanut butter, and crispy M&M's.
- Yellow: He is happy and easily fooled. He is the mascot for Peanut M&M's.
- Blue: He is known as the "cool one" and is the mascot for Almond M&M's.
- Green: She is the mascot for Dark Chocolate Mint and Peanut Butter M&M's.
- Orange: He is a bit nervous. He was introduced with Crispy M&M's and is now the mascot for Pretzel M&M's. He is often joined by Pretzel Guy, who gives him advice.
Other mascots that are no longer used include Chocolate Bar, who always melted.
Female M&M's mascots were introduced in 1995. Green was the only female M&M's mascot until 2012. Then, a new character named Ms. Brown was introduced. She is the "Chief Chocolate Officer."
In January 2022, Mars announced changes to the M&M's characters' designs. The goal was to make them represent more types of personalities. For example, Green and Brown M&M's started wearing more casual clothes. In September 2022, a new Purple M&M was introduced. She first appeared in an ad singing "I'm Just Gonna Be Me."
In January 2023, the company joked about replacing the M&M's characters with comedian Maya Rudolph. This was part of a Super Bowl ad campaign. During the ad, Rudolph launched her own candy called "Ma&Ya's" candy-coated clams. After the game, M&M's confirmed that the spokescandies were back.
| Character | Type | Voice actor |
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| Red | Milk Chocolate, Dark Chocolate, Peanut Butter, and Crispy |
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| Yellow | Peanut and Dark Chocolate Peanut |
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| Blue | Almond, Raspberry, Dark Chocolate, and Hazelnut Spread |
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| Green | Dark Chocolate, Mint, and Peanut Butter |
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| Orange (Crispy) | Crispy and Pretzel |
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| Ms. Brown | Dark Chocolate, Milk Chocolate and Fudge Brownie | |
| Purple | Peanut, Caramel, Cold Brew, Vegan, and Hazelnut Spread | |
| Caramel (cube) | Caramel | |
| Pretzel Guy (symmetrical) | Pretzel |
Color Changes Over Time
The first M&M's colors were red, yellow, purple, green, and brown. Purple was stopped and replaced with tan in the late 1940s.
In 1976, Mars removed red M&M's. This was due to health worries about a red dye called amaranth. Even though M&M's did not use that specific dye, the company wanted to calm worried customers. Ten years later, a student started a fun campaign to bring back red M&M's. This campaign became very popular worldwide. Red M&M's were brought back, and the orange M&M's that replaced them were also kept.
In early 1995, Mars held a contest. People voted on whether blue, pink, or purple would replace the tan M&M's. Blue won with 54% of the votes. It replaced tan in late 1995.
In 2002, Mars asked people to vote for a new color from three choices: aqua, pink, and purple. Purple won and was available for a limited time.
Since 2004, you can buy M&M's online in 17 colors. You can even print personalized messages on one side of each candy. These custom M&M's were first for holidays but are now available all year.
For Valentine's Day in 2008, Mars released bags of all-green M&M's. They were brought back in 2009.
In October 2011, Mars released M&M's White Chocolate Candy Corn just for Halloween in the United States. These candies came in white, bright yellow, and bright orange.
The following chart shows how the colors of the main milk chocolate M&M's have changed. From 1941 to 1969, each package had five different colors. When red M&M's came back in 1987, they were added as a sixth color.
