Fact #1: Forrest Mars came up with the idea for M & Ms during the Spanish Civil War. He discovered that soldiers were looking for a taste of home, in the form of chocolate, but needed something that could withstand hot temperatures. Mars took their request as a challenge and eventually came up with the candy, which he packaged in heavy tubes. Soldiers today still love M & Ms because they can hold up in just about any climate.
Fact #2: Red, green, and yellow colors were added to peanut M & Ms in 1960, but orange wasn't added until 1976.
Fact #3: Red M & Ms were discontinued in the mid-70's because of concerns that red food coloring was connected to cancer. Red M & Ms were brought back into the fold in 1987 when consumers demanded his return.
Fact #4: A holiday blend of special colored M & Ms were developed in the early 80's. The first blend was a mixture of red and green candies for Christmas. A mixture of pastel candies quickly followed that for Easter. Eventually, the special holiday line went on to add pink and red for Valentine's Day.
Fact #5: Ms Green - - the first female M & M character - - was born in 1997.
Fact #6: In 2001 M & Ms launched a global call for a new color to add to the M & M mix. Citizens of over 200 countries took part in the survey, which was conducted by ballot, phone, website, mail, and even on site at kiosks. The result wasn't quite unanimous, but purple edged out aqua by four percentage points to become a temporary M & M color.
Fact #7: You can purchase customized M & M's in colors and sayings that you choose through the candy's official website.
Although M&M's aren't my favorite candy, who doesn't enjoy a handful of the chocolatey goodness, especially in these festive spring colors?! :) I hope you enjoy this picture almost as much as those candies.
**You can find all these and more fun facts at this Associated Content website.
