Chocoholics sour on new Hershey’s formula

MSNBC ^ | Sept. 19, 2008 | Laura T. Coffey

[Daffynition]

Oh, milk chocolate. Wherefore art thou?

Apparently not in some Hershey’s products that contained milk chocolate for years, and that has passionate chocolate aficionados fighting mad.

Products such as Whatchamacallit, Milk Duds, Mr. Goodbar and Krackel no longer have milk chocolate coatings, and Hershey’s Kissables are now labeled “chocolate candy” instead of “milk chocolate.”

What’s going on here? On Friday, TODAY consumer correspondent Janice Lieberman reported that Hershey’s has switched to less expensive ingredients in several of its products. In particular, cocoa butter — the ingredient famous for giving chocolate its creamy, melt-in-your-mouth texture — has been replaced with vegetable oil.

The removal of cocoa butter violates the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s definition of milk chocolate, so subtle changes have appeared on the labels of the Hershey’s products with altered recipes. Products once labeled “milk chocolate” now say “chocolate candy,” “made with chocolate” or “chocolatey.”

Some say the label changes are too difficult to spot.

“A lot of people don’t notice it. The package looks exactly the same,” said Cybele May, who has chronicled the changes in detail on her Candy Blog. “I feel betrayed by Hershey’s. They’re giving me an inferior product and they’re not even telling me …

“I call it mockolate, which is basically a fake chocolate product.”

Crunched by rising costs In a statement, Hershey’s told TODAY that consumers love its products and all its candies are clearly labeled. It still offers real milk chocolate in Hershey’s Kisses, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and its classic chocolate bar.

“And recently it put back the milk chocolate in Almond Joy because consumers complained,” Lieberman said Friday in her report.

Experts say that while many manufacturers cope with higher costs by increasing their prices or reducing their product sizes, Hershey’s change was meant to be ... [snip]

[MarkL]

Take a look at the Cadbury Cream Eggs that they sell around Easter... They're about 2/3 the size that they used to be, and they're far more expensive now.

Shouldn't be a surprise.

Mark

[MarkL]

You haven't been able to get a real Coke in over 20 years (unless you get some of the grey market Mexican ones that have started hitting the stores). At least there are a couple of bottlers who still make real Dr Pepper.

If you want to walk down memory lane with a coke, you CAN get Coca Cola made with real sugar around Passover (for my goyshe Freeper Friends, that would be around Easter time ;-) ), since HFCS is NOT kosher for Passover. So Coca Cola either switches to the sugar formula, or imports it in from Mexico, I'm not sure which. However, you need to look for it. Coke continues to sell their regular Coca Cola during that time. Only a few kosher stores carry it as a special product. And if your city doesn't have much of a Jewish population, you're probably out of luck.

Mark

[martin_fierro]

I have always preferred Ghiradelli’s.

Did you know that Ghirardelli's has a factory outlet? TRUTH!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Never touch Hershey’s myself, aside from when I was on the ‘chocolate learning curve’ way back when.

I prefer chocolate from Lindt, the higher cocoa content, the better. :) (I agree that Dove is good for creaminess; I bought my outside crew ice cream Dove Bars as a treat one day for all of the hot, heavy work they do for me, and they thought they had died and gone to Heaven.)

I never would’ve noticed a change because I don’t eat “candy bars” just bar chocolate in lady-like portions...ROFLMAO!

http://www.lindtusa.com/category-exec/category_id/3/landing/1/nm/Best_Sellers

Walgreen’s has some really good deals on chocolate bars from time to time...and they honor any and all Russell Stover coupons, too.

I remember my Uncle sending us See’s Candy from CA when I was a kid. Terrific stuff!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

“Swiss chocolate is still the best on the market.”

Agreed. Lindt gets my money all the time. :)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

And here is our local Chocolatier. His shop is less than two miles from my house...dangerous for us all! If you need a stellar gift to send this upcoming holiday, for a business ‘Thank You’ or you’re trying to get someone to fall in love with you (LOL!), please consider buying from Markus. They are fabulous tasting, very pretty and the packaging is awesome. One of the gals that works for me in the summer works for Markus in the winter months:

http://www.candinas.com/chocvar.html

[xsmommy]

buy me some! ; )

[Caramelgal]

I happen to like Dagoba ... not b/c it’s organic ... just like the taste.

Me too but it’s hard to find. I like their Roseberry Dark Chocolate Bar. Ironically I found it at the big Hershey Store right next to Chocolate World in Hershey PA (where I can attest, they still make chocolate).

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

Have you tried to look for Toblerone in your local pharmacy's candy racks?

Question for all. Why does European chocolate taste better? Hint, it's an ingredient they use that we legally can't.

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

I have to clarify that question. It’s an ingredient we can use, just legally not any from that particular source.

[madison10]

Hint, it's an ingredient they use that we legally can't.

Real sugar? Real fat? Hints, please.

[Daffynition]

I know where to find it, but it’s in such a remote place in my travels, I hardly ever get there. ;-(

Roseberry Dark Chocolate Bar.... to die for!

[Caramelgal]

Contrary to what some of you all think Hershey did not move all its operations and manufacturing to Mexico. Hershey still makes candy here in the US, most of it in Hershey, PA where they still have their headquarters. They do have a plant in Guadalajara Mexico, but I think that’s been operating for a long time.

The also have plants in Smiths Falls, Ontario, Canada and Oakdale, California that are closing (or have closed) and are being replaced in part by a new plant in Monterrey, Mexico.

From their website: http://www.thehersheycompany.com/about/faq.asp

Q. Given all the publicity around Hershey's manufacturing network, does the company still make chocolate in Hershey, PA.?

A. Yes! Our history in the town goes back more than 100 years, and we are committed to continue making the world’s best chocolate products in Hershey, Pennsylvania. In fact, the company operates - and will continue to operate - three factories in Hershey.

The Hershey Company is making changes to our global manufacturing network to ensure that our company remains competitive in the global marketplace for the long term. When these changes are completed, 90 percent of the items that Hershey sells in the United States and Canada will continue to be made in these countries.

And we will continue to make HERSHEY'S milk chocolate bars, HERSHEY'S KISSES milk chocolates and REESE'S Peanut Butter Cups as well as a wide range of other products in Hershey, Pennsylvania.

http://www.thehersheycompany.com/about/manufacturing.asp

BTW Daffynition - Hershey doesn’t make but does market Dagoba under their Artisan Confections Company. (That explains why I found it at the Chocolate World outlet store).

And while The Hershey Company is a publicly traded corporation, The Hershey Trust, as trustee for the Milton Hershey School, owns Hershey Entertainment & Resorts in its entirety, and also owns the majority of the voting stock of The Hershey Company.

[Daffynition]

The info is great Caramelgal. Thank you.

After all the chocoltae talk last night ... I realize I need to stock up ... winter’s acomin’!

[rabidralph]

My tastes aren’t as sophisticated as yours. I still buy Hershey’s with almonds from time to time and I love the Kisses. Dove chocolate is very creamy and rich-tasting. I may have had a Lindt but I’m always turned off by their crushed nuts chocolate balls (does that make me a racist?).

[StrictTime]

I’m guessing Cuban beans (or beans from some African country that we can’t do trade with).

[Kirkwood]

“If you want to walk down memory lane with a coke, you CAN get Coca Cola made with real sugar around Passover (for my goyshe Freeper Friends, that would be around Easter time ;-) ), since HFCS is NOT kosher for Passover. “

Is this labeled in a distinctive way other than the kosher circle K or star K symbol? Is it in bottles only? I’ll look for it around that time. Thanks.

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

I wanted to give people a chance to answer. The difference is they can use Cuban sugar and we cant. No idea why it tastes different but I think some of it may have to do with the way we process it.

A good comparison would be next time one is in Europe, bring back some chocolate made over there like M&Ms and compare them to ours. Theirs taste better.

[MarkL]

Is this labeled in a distinctive way other than the kosher circle K or star K symbol? Is it in bottles only? I’ll look for it around that time. Thanks.

Without careful examination, you'd never notice a difference. I've only seen it in 2 liter bottles: I don't know if they bring it into the country any other way. If you look, check near the "K" (for Kosher), and make sure that there's a "P" or "Passover" as well. I believe that if you check the ingredients, you'll see "Sucrose" listed. At least that's what my questionable memory tells me.

Again, remember that this is a seasonal thing. You can't find it now, even in Kosher grocery stores that sell coca cola products.

Mark

[trimom]

See’s Dark Chocolate Chocolate Chip truffles are almost good enough for me to give up, um....my husband. Almost.

Yeah, that’s good candy.