Mars Bar
Encyclopedia
Mars is a chocolate bar manufactured by Mars, Incorporated
. It was first manufactured in Slough
, Berkshire
in the United Kingdom in 1932 as a sweeter version of the US Milky Way bar
which Mars, Inc. produced (not to be confused with the European version of Milky Way, which is similar to the US 3 Musketeers). It was advertised to the trade as being made with Cadbury's chocolate as 'couverture'.
In the United States, a different confection bears the Mars bar name. Featuring nougat, soft caramel, and almonds coated in milk chocolate, the American Mars bar was relaunched in 2010 after being discontinued in 2002.
Almond. The U.S. version of the Mars bar was relaunched in January 2010 and is initially being sold on an exclusive basis through Wal-Mart stores. The European version of the Mars bar is also sold in some United States grocery stores, usually being found in the imported or ethnic food sections. Regional European variations also exist, for example in Finland and other Nordic Countries, a standard Mars Bar weighs 47g.
, rented a factory in Slough
and with a staff of twelve people, began manufacturing a chocolate bar consisting of nougat and caramel covered in milk chocolate, modelled after his father's Milky Way bar, which was already popular in the US. Today the basic recipe is unaltered but the size of the bar and the proportions of the main components have changed over the years.
In 2002, the UK Mars bar was reformulated and repackaged.This made it sell for more money. The nougat was made lighter, the chocolate on top became thinner, and the overall weight of the bar was reduced slightly. This was met with outrage from Mars purists, as in a sales pitch to local media in Slough, the change in ingredients was to follow the trend of its sister the Milky Way bar and 5 Star bars. Product designers at The Mars Candy Company in the US put this down to nostalgia over the past hugely popular Starbar
, which also contained the same reinvented 'light whipped nougatine.' The packaging was also redesigned with a less-bold and a more cursive logo.
The famous slogan "A Mars a day helps you work, rest and play" was written by Francis Harmer- Brown and Peter Pfeffer in 1959 but often erroneously attributed to Murray Walker
. This was replaced with "Pleasure you can't measure", a re-branding intended to appeal to a more feminine, youthful market.
Various sizes are made: miniature bars called "Fun Size" (19.7 g) and "Snack Time" (36.5 g) (both sold in multiple packs); a larger multi-pack size of 54 g; the regular sized single 58 g bar and a "king-size" 84 g bar which has since been replaced by "Mars Duo" (91 g) - a pack that contains 2 smaller bars instead of 1 large one. The regular 58 gram single bar contains 260 kilocalories.
In the second half of 2008, Mars UK reduced the size of regular bars from 62.5 g to the current 58 g. Although the reduction in size was not publicised at the time, Mars claimed the change was designed to help tackle the obesity crisis in the UK. The company later confirmed that the real reason for the change was triggered by rising costs.
In the UK, most Mars bars are still made at the Slough Trading Estate
.
Caramel bars.
in July. "Believe" took prominence on the packaging ("Original Mars" appeared in smaller print) to indicate support for the England national football team
. Advertising in other nations of the UK was tailored to reflect their own teams after the public condemnation, although in Scotland the "Believe" packaging was still used - causing negative publicity.
On 30 July 2008, the Tasmanian government
announced that it had secured a major sponsor, Mars for a bid to enter the Australian Football League
in a deal worth $4 million over 3 years and will temporarily change the name of its top-selling chocolate bar in Australia to Believe, to help promote Tasmania's cause.
Mars were re-branded "Hopp" (engl. "Go!") in Switzerland during UEFA Euro 2008. Like the "Believe" packaging sold in the UK in 2006, "Original Mars" was also shown in smaller print.
In 2010, to promote England's involvement in the 2010 FIFA World Cup
, the background of the UK Mars packaging became the St. George cross.
Deep-fried Mars bars are available from some fish-and-chip shops in the UK (mainly in Scotland), Republic of Ireland, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States.
bar, were recalled due to an anonymous extortion attempt against Star City Casino
in Sydney
. The extortionist claimed to have poisoned seven Mars and Snickers bars at random stores in New South Wales
. As a result Masterfoods Corporation, the company that manufactures Mars bars in Australia, recalled the entire Mars and Snickers product from store shelves in New South Wales. Nineteen people were possibly affected, with two being admitted to hospital. In the later half of August 2005, the threat to the public was deemed negligible and the bars returned to shelves.
, Maltesers
, Minstrels
and Twix
would no longer be suitable for vegetarians because of the introduction of rennet
, a chemical sourced from calves’ stomachs used in the production of whey
.
The rabbi
nical authorities declared that the products remained kosher for Jewish consumption.
The decision was condemned by several groups, with the Vegetarian Society
stating that "at a time when more and more consumers are concerned about the provenance of their food, Mars’ decision to use non-vegetarian whey is a backward step".
Mars later abandoned these plans, stating that it became "very clear, very quickly" that it had made a mistake.
since World War II
, much in the way that the Big Mac Index
has proven to be a good indicator of the actual relative purchasing power of world currencies.
Mars, Incorporated
Mars, Incorporated is a worldwide manufacturer of confectionery, pet food, and other food products with US$30 billion in annual sales in 2010, and is ranked as the 5th largest privately held company in the United States by Forbes. Headquartered in McLean, unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia,...
. It was first manufactured in Slough
Slough Trading Estate
The Slough Trading Estate founded in Slough, Berkshire in 1920, was an early business park in the United Kingdom. According to the estate's owners and operators, SEGRO , Slough Trading Estate consists of of commercial property in Slough and provides of accommodation to 500 businesses and has...
, Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
in the United Kingdom in 1932 as a sweeter version of the US Milky Way bar
Milky Way bar
The Milky Way bar is a chocolate bar distributed by the Mars confectionery company. The American version of the Milky Way bar is made of chocolate-malt nougat topped with caramel and covered with milk chocolate and is very similar to the Mars bar sold in other countries...
which Mars, Inc. produced (not to be confused with the European version of Milky Way, which is similar to the US 3 Musketeers). It was advertised to the trade as being made with Cadbury's chocolate as 'couverture'.
In the United States, a different confection bears the Mars bar name. Featuring nougat, soft caramel, and almonds coated in milk chocolate, the American Mars bar was relaunched in 2010 after being discontinued in 2002.
International variations
Chocolate bars sold as Mars vary in different regions of the world. The American version was discontinued in 2002 and was replaced with the slightly different SnickersSnickers
Snickers is a brand name chocolate bar made by Mars, Incorporated. It consists of peanut nougat topped with roasted peanuts and caramel, enrobed in milk chocolate. Snickers has annual global sales of $2 billion....
Almond. The U.S. version of the Mars bar was relaunched in January 2010 and is initially being sold on an exclusive basis through Wal-Mart stores. The European version of the Mars bar is also sold in some United States grocery stores, usually being found in the imported or ethnic food sections. Regional European variations also exist, for example in Finland and other Nordic Countries, a standard Mars Bar weighs 47g.
UK Mars bar
In 1932, Forrest Mars, son of American candy maker Frank C. MarsFrank C. Mars
Franklin Clarence Mars , sometimes known as Frank C. Mars, was an American business magnate who founded the food company Mars, Incorporated, which makes mostly chocolate candy. Mars and his son Forrest Edward Mars developed M&M's.-Family:He was born in 1883 in Hancock, Minnesota...
, rented a factory in Slough
Slough
Slough is a borough and unitary authority within the ceremonial county of Royal Berkshire, England. The town straddles the A4 Bath Road and the Great Western Main Line, west of central London...
and with a staff of twelve people, began manufacturing a chocolate bar consisting of nougat and caramel covered in milk chocolate, modelled after his father's Milky Way bar, which was already popular in the US. Today the basic recipe is unaltered but the size of the bar and the proportions of the main components have changed over the years.
In 2002, the UK Mars bar was reformulated and repackaged.This made it sell for more money. The nougat was made lighter, the chocolate on top became thinner, and the overall weight of the bar was reduced slightly. This was met with outrage from Mars purists, as in a sales pitch to local media in Slough, the change in ingredients was to follow the trend of its sister the Milky Way bar and 5 Star bars. Product designers at The Mars Candy Company in the US put this down to nostalgia over the past hugely popular Starbar
Starbar
Star Bar is a brand of chocolate bar currently manufactured by Cadbury Ireland. Initially popular in the mid-1970s, the Star Bar largely exists due to a small but loyal fan-base that includes Noel Gallagher , as the product has not been advertised or promoted for years...
, which also contained the same reinvented 'light whipped nougatine.' The packaging was also redesigned with a less-bold and a more cursive logo.
The famous slogan "A Mars a day helps you work, rest and play" was written by Francis Harmer- Brown and Peter Pfeffer in 1959 but often erroneously attributed to Murray Walker
Murray Walker
Graeme Murray Walker, OBE is a former Formula One motorsport commentator...
. This was replaced with "Pleasure you can't measure", a re-branding intended to appeal to a more feminine, youthful market.
Various sizes are made: miniature bars called "Fun Size" (19.7 g) and "Snack Time" (36.5 g) (both sold in multiple packs); a larger multi-pack size of 54 g; the regular sized single 58 g bar and a "king-size" 84 g bar which has since been replaced by "Mars Duo" (91 g) - a pack that contains 2 smaller bars instead of 1 large one. The regular 58 gram single bar contains 260 kilocalories.
In the second half of 2008, Mars UK reduced the size of regular bars from 62.5 g to the current 58 g. Although the reduction in size was not publicised at the time, Mars claimed the change was designed to help tackle the obesity crisis in the UK. The company later confirmed that the real reason for the change was triggered by rising costs.
In the UK, most Mars bars are still made at the Slough Trading Estate
Slough Trading Estate
The Slough Trading Estate founded in Slough, Berkshire in 1920, was an early business park in the United Kingdom. According to the estate's owners and operators, SEGRO , Slough Trading Estate consists of of commercial property in Slough and provides of accommodation to 500 businesses and has...
.
Canada
Mars bars have been available in Canada for several decades, including numerous limited edition flavours. Because of Canada's higher chocolate standards, the Canadian "Mars" is not considered a "chocolate bar" and is labelled instead as a "candy bar." In fact, unlike the American version, which labels the bar as "milk chocolate," the Canadian version makes no mention of chocolate on the front of the wrapper. Since mid-2006, all Mars bars produced in Canada are peanut-free. Mars is one of the few candy bars in North America for which no size of the product has any trace of peanuts. In February 2008, Mars Canada introduced a new variety of Mars bar called "Mars Caramel" to compete with the Cadbury Caramilk and Nestle AeroAero (chocolate)
Aero is a milk chocolate bar filled with bubbles of air, made by Nestlé and primarily sold in the United Kingdom , the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, Argentina, Australia, Middle East and Canada.-History:...
Caramel bars.
Limited editions
Several limited-edition variants of Mars bars have been released in various countries. (These have often been permanent releases in other countries). They include:- Mars Almond
- Mars Dark and Light
- Mars Midnight, white inside Mars bar but covered in dark chocolate. Now named Mars Dark, it is on permanent release in Canada, and is on a Limited Edition sale in the UK, as of October 2009.
- Mars Gold
- Mars Mini Eggs (Available around EasterEasterEaster is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year. According to the Canonical gospels, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Day or Easter Sunday...
) - Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's ChestPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's ChestPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest is a 2006 adventure fantasy film and the second film of the Pirates of the Caribbean series, following Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl . It was directed by Gore Verbinski, written by Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, and produced by...
Mars bar - Mars Triple Chocolate (Australia), also available as limited edition in United Kingdom (August 2011)
- Mars Lite (Australia)
- Mars Lava (Australia - Orange flavoured)
- Mars Fling (Australia)
- Mars Miniatures, 5 fun size bars in the same packet
- Mars XXX (Australia) sold in gold wrapping. It contains chocolate flavoured caramel and nougat. Now called the Mars Triple Chocolate.
- Mars Chill (Australia, New Zealand and UK) - wrapper had 'Mars' written in white, turned to blue when cold
- Mars Rocks (Australia and New Zealand), released by Mars Snackfood Australia in August 2007, is made of chocolate-malt nougat topped with a layer of caramel and covered with milk chocolate embedded with "crispies" (whose main ingredients are wheat flour and sugar).
- Mars Red (Australia) - Mars bar with half the fat of a regular Mars bar. Has a red wrapper with 'Mars' written in black.
- Mars World Cup (England) - Mars bar with the St George's CrossSt George's CrossSt George's Cross is a red cross on a white background used as a symbolic reference to Saint George. The red cross on white was associated with St George from medieval times....
on the packaging to commemorate England's participation in the 2010 FIFA World Cup2010 FIFA World CupThe 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...
. - Mars 100% Caramel - (Australia) - introduced in January 2011. It is simply a standard Mars Bar, but with the nougat removed.
Spinoff products
Other products have also been released using the Mars branding.- Mars Delight
- Mars Extra Chocolate Drink
- Mars Active Energy Drink
- Mars No Added Sugar Drink
- Mars Ice Cream bars
- Mars Midnight Ice Cream bars
- McVities Mars Mini Rolls
- Mars Bisc & (Australia & the UK - A biscuit with Mars topping)
- Mars Pods (Australia & New Zealand - a small crunchy biscuit with Mars filling)
- Mars Rocks
- Mars MuffinMars MuffinA Mars Muffin is a spin-off baked goods item produced by McVitie's, and marketed in the United Kingdom. Being a spin-off product from the Mars Bar, It is in the shape of a muffin, and is covered in Mars Bar style chocolate. It is filled with caramel, and the cake has a caramel taste to it....
- Mars Planets - Small balls with nougat, crunchy and caramel fillings.
- Mars Slim bar (Canada)
- Mars Flavia coffee
Custom packaging
The Original Mars bar in "Believe" packaging was sold in the UK from 18 April 2006 until the end of the 2006 FIFA World Cup2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
in July. "Believe" took prominence on the packaging ("Original Mars" appeared in smaller print) to indicate support for the England national football team
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
. Advertising in other nations of the UK was tailored to reflect their own teams after the public condemnation, although in Scotland the "Believe" packaging was still used - causing negative publicity.
On 30 July 2008, the Tasmanian government
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
announced that it had secured a major sponsor, Mars for a bid to enter the Australian Football League
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
in a deal worth $4 million over 3 years and will temporarily change the name of its top-selling chocolate bar in Australia to Believe, to help promote Tasmania's cause.
Mars were re-branded "Hopp" (engl. "Go!") in Switzerland during UEFA Euro 2008. Like the "Believe" packaging sold in the UK in 2006, "Original Mars" was also shown in smaller print.
In 2010, to promote England's involvement in the 2010 FIFA World Cup
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...
, the background of the UK Mars packaging became the St. George cross.
Former
- "Mars macht mobil bei Arbeit, Sport und Spiel" (Mars mobilizes you at work, sports and play) - Germany (1980s and 1990s)
- "A Mars a day helps you work, rest and play" - Australia, United Kingdom
- "Out of this world!" - Australia, UK
- "MARS LEGEND" - Australia
- "Earth - what you'd eat if you lived on Mars" - New Zealand and Australia
- "Another way to make your day" - UK (2005)
- "Feels good to be back! " - Australia (2005)
- "An almond in every bite!" - USA
- "Un Mars, et ça repart" (A Mars, and you're off again) - France (late 1990s and renewed from 2006)
- "Mars, que du bonheur" (Mars, only happiness) - FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
- "Mars, haal eruit wat erin zit!" (Mars, get out of it, what's in it) - The NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, FlandersFlandersFlanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp... - "Who knows? In 1,000 years we could all be sitting on Mars eating Earth bars." - United Kingdom (A full page advertisement placed in the official Guide Book for the Millennium DomeMillennium DomeThe Millennium Dome, colloquially referred to simply as The Dome or even The O2 Arena, is the original name of a large dome-shaped building, originally used to house the Millennium Experience, a major exhibition celebrating the beginning of the third millennium...
in 2000)
Current
- "Mars your day" - AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
- "A Mars a day helps you work, rest and play" - AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
- "Recharge on Mars" - CanadaCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
- "Mars, pleasure you can't measure" - EuropeEuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
- "Un coup de barre ? Mars et ça repart !" (Feeling beat? A Mars and you're off again!) - FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
- "Nimm Mars, gib Gas" (Take Mars, step on the gas) - GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
- "Mars, momento di vero godimento" (Mars, a moment of pure enjoyment) - ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
- "Mars, geeft je energie" (Gives you energy) - The NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and FlandersFlandersFlanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
, BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many... - "Work-Rest-Play" - UK (later "Work-Rest-Play your part")
- "Turn Up the Heat!" - (UK Promotional packs in 2010)
Deep-fried Mars bar
This is a Mars bar which has been coated with batter and deep-fried in oil or beef fat. First reports of battered Mars bars being sold in Stonehaven, Scotland date back to 1995.Deep-fried Mars bars are available from some fish-and-chip shops in the UK (mainly in Scotland), Republic of Ireland, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States.
Australian recall
In July 2005, Mars bars, along with the SnickersSnickers
Snickers is a brand name chocolate bar made by Mars, Incorporated. It consists of peanut nougat topped with roasted peanuts and caramel, enrobed in milk chocolate. Snickers has annual global sales of $2 billion....
bar, were recalled due to an anonymous extortion attempt against Star City Casino
Star City Casino
The Star Sydney Casino & Hotel in Pyrmont, Sydney, is the second largest casino in Australia after rival Melbourne's Crown Casino. Overlooking Darling Harbour, The Star Sydney Casino features two gaming floors, eight bars, seven restaurants, 351 hotel rooms and 130 serviced and privately owned...
in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. The extortionist claimed to have poisoned seven Mars and Snickers bars at random stores in New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
. As a result Masterfoods Corporation, the company that manufactures Mars bars in Australia, recalled the entire Mars and Snickers product from store shelves in New South Wales. Nineteen people were possibly affected, with two being admitted to hospital. In the later half of August 2005, the threat to the public was deemed negligible and the bars returned to shelves.
Animal products controversy
In May 2007 Mars UK announced that Mars bars, along with many of their other products such as SnickersSnickers
Snickers is a brand name chocolate bar made by Mars, Incorporated. It consists of peanut nougat topped with roasted peanuts and caramel, enrobed in milk chocolate. Snickers has annual global sales of $2 billion....
, Maltesers
Maltesers
Maltesers are a confectionery product manufactured by Mars, Incorporated.Maltesers consist of a roughly spherical malt honeycomb centre, surrounded by Milk chocolate. They are most popular in the UK, Australia, Ireland, Canada, Poland, France, Hong Kong, and Portugal...
, Minstrels
Minstrels (chocolate)
Minstrels are milk chocolate buttons with a hard glazed shell sold in several countries including the UK, Ireland, South Africa, Cyprus, France, Malta, and Spain....
and Twix
Twix
Twix is a chocolate bar made by Mars, Inc., consisting of a biscuit finger, topped with caramel and coated in milk chocolate. Being somewhat smaller in width than other confectionery bars, Twix bars are typically packaged in pairs...
would no longer be suitable for vegetarians because of the introduction of rennet
Rennet
Rennet is a complex of enzymes produced in any mammalian stomach to digest the mother's milk, and is often used in the production of cheese. Rennet contains many enzymes, including a proteolytic enzyme that coagulates the milk, causing it to separate into solids and liquid...
, a chemical sourced from calves’ stomachs used in the production of whey
Whey
Whey or Milk Serum is the liquid remaining after milk has been curdled and strained. It is a by-product of the manufacture of cheese or casein and has several commercial uses. Sweet whey is manufactured during the making of rennet types of hard cheese like cheddar or Swiss cheese...
.
The rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
nical authorities declared that the products remained kosher for Jewish consumption.
The decision was condemned by several groups, with the Vegetarian Society
Vegetarian Society
The Vegetarian Society is a British registered charity established on 30 September 1847 to "support, represent and increase the number of vegetarians in the UK."-History:...
stating that "at a time when more and more consumers are concerned about the provenance of their food, Mars’ decision to use non-vegetarian whey is a backward step".
Mars later abandoned these plans, stating that it became "very clear, very quickly" that it had made a mistake.
Economics
It has been observed on several occasions that the price of a Mars bar correlates fairly accurately with the change in value of the pound sterlingPound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
since World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, much in the way that the Big Mac Index
Big Mac index
The Big Mac Index is published by The Economist as an informal way of measuring the purchasing power parity between two currencies and provides a test of the extent to which market exchange rates result in goods costing the same in different countries...
has proven to be a good indicator of the actual relative purchasing power of world currencies.
External links
- The Visible Mars bar project, which shows the difference between US and UK Mars bars.
- Site with cross-sections of both the original U.S. and Canadian Mars bars
- Slough History Online
- The Chocolate Review's article on the Mars bar