Story of Red M&M Candy Disappearance and Return
- 10 years ago
Did you know that for several years, starting in 1976, the iconic red M&M was no longer being produced by the Mars candy company? The change came after the United States Food and Drug Administration banned the Red No. 2 food dye from being used in edible products.
Did you know that for several years, starting in 1976, the iconic red M&M was no longer being produced by candy company, Mars?
The change came after the United States Food and Drug Administration banned Red No. 2 food dye from being used in edible products despite a series of questionable studies into its safety.
Even though red M&M’s are made using Red No. 40, Mars wanted to prevent any customer confusion about the red colored chocolates and decided to eliminate them entirely.
For several years they remained discontinued, until a college freshman reportedly launched the Society for the Restoration and Preservation of Red M&M’s in 1985, and wrote letters to Mars, President Ronald Reagan, and the FDA pleading for their return.
Support and media attention grew and finally Mars granted his wish during the Christmas of 1985, when red was reintroduced to the colors of M&M’s.
Eventually, Mars announced that red M&M’s would make up 20 percent of the colors in each bag.
The red M&M became the spokes mascot for the candy, appearing in several commercials with an attitude from having been left out of the bag for so long.
Did you know that for several years, starting in 1976, the iconic red M&M was no longer being produced by candy company, Mars?
The change came after the United States Food and Drug Administration banned Red No. 2 food dye from being used in edible products despite a series of questionable studies into its safety.
Even though red M&M’s are made using Red No. 40, Mars wanted to prevent any customer confusion about the red colored chocolates and decided to eliminate them entirely.
For several years they remained discontinued, until a college freshman reportedly launched the Society for the Restoration and Preservation of Red M&M’s in 1985, and wrote letters to Mars, President Ronald Reagan, and the FDA pleading for their return.
Support and media attention grew and finally Mars granted his wish during the Christmas of 1985, when red was reintroduced to the colors of M&M’s.
Eventually, Mars announced that red M&M’s would make up 20 percent of the colors in each bag.
The red M&M became the spokes mascot for the candy, appearing in several commercials with an attitude from having been left out of the bag for so long.