Posted on 02/19/2026 4:13:59 AM PST by DFG
The grandson of the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups creator is slamming the Hershey Co. for allegedly switching to cheaper ingredients to make the iconic snacks – and his accusations are sparking fierce pushback from his relatives, The Post has learned.
Brad Reese, 70 – whose grandfather HB Reese invented the famous treat – claimed Hershey has swapped out milk chocolate for cheap compound coating made from vegetable oils. He also claims Hershey has sneakily replaced real peanut butter with peanut-butter flavored cremes.
“I can’t just let it go. They’re lowering the quality of ingredients, charging the same price and probably giving you a smaller product size,” Reese, a retiree living in West Palm Beach, told The Post. “I’m really embarrassed as a member of the Reese family.”
The Hershey Co. told The Post its original Peanut Butter Cups are still made with peanut butter and milk chocolate – though it has made “recipe adjustments” in new products that “allow us to make new shapes, sizes and innovations that Reese’s fans have come to love and ask for.”
“What consumer that you know of has said, ‘Hey, I don’t want milk chocolate in my Reese’s products anymore. I prefer compound coating!’” Reese shot back with a laugh, adding that the statement does not specifically deny changing ingredients in other Reese’s products.
His LinkedIn posts blasting the alleged quality compromises quickly went viral – and his cousin, whose daughter works for the Hershey Company, pleaded with him to stop in a heated text message.
“Brad, this is your cousin Becky. You have created a nightmare for our family and the company,” read a copy of the text message obtained by The Post, which matched the phone number for his cousin, Becky Hilgers.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
The process, the history, and the results might surprise you.
From Wikipedia...I hope this is true.
“According to their own website, Ghirardelli is one of the few chocolate companies in the United States to control every aspect of its chocolate manufacturing process,[8][self-published source?] rejecting up to 40% of the cocoa seeds shipped in order to select what the company calls the “highest quality” seeds. The company then roasts the cocoa seeds in-house by removing the outer shell on the seed and roasting the inside of the seed, or the nibs.[14] The chocolate is then ground and refined until the particles are 19 micrometers (0.00075 in) in size.”
Consumer Reports rated the Ghiradelli 86% dark chocolate as having 36% and 39% levels of lead and cadmium based on California’s maximum allowable dosage levels.
https://www.consumerreports.org/health/food-safety/lead-and-cadmium-in-dark-chocolate-a8480295550/
And the street lights were Hershey Kisses — at least they were when we visited decades ago.
I’ve heard the same complaint—cheaper or synthetic ingredients that don’t taste the same—about Rao’s pasta sauce, Campbell’s Soups and of course American Coca Cola. It’s sort of like what gay marriage is to marriage, or transwomen are to women. Just not the same.
Years ago when we would visit Seattle from Anchorage, our last stop before getting on the plane to go home was See’s kiosk at the airport. We took back a carry-on full.
We buy Smuckers Natural peanut butter, or Kirkland brand. Both contain only peanuts and salt.
That other crap they sell, like Jif, are disgusting.
I believe the legal thing is that if the container says “ice cream”, it’s the real deal. If it says anything else, like “frozen dessert”, avoid it.
More or less, yes ... although I still advise a careful reading of the ingredients list.
It used to very good, not too sweet and didn’t have that weird cloying silky texture. I had European chocolate to compare it to then and it was as good as most of it.
But then, they started making it much sweeter decades ago because sweetener was cheap filler, and now it melts very easily. Maybe they switched to corn syrup or just increased the sugar ratio but whatever it was ruined the milk chocolate.
That is when I quit buying candy bars and just bought semi sweet or dark chocolate chips instead.
I really liked Giardellis but chocolate is certainly pricey these days.
Blue Bell still makes real ice cream. We buy our ice cream at a regional dairy store. It’s the real deal. But it’s just Oklahoma and parts of Texas, Arkansas and Kansas.
I’ve taken to making it myself - cocoa powder, water, sugar, a bit of vanilla extract.
Recipes on line.
Loved them before... Butterfinger was my go to for years.
I used to get Hershey’s Candy Cane Kisses when they first hit the market. Now they taste like peppermint wax. Horrible mouth feel.
Thanks dweller!
If anyone has tried Justin’s - They are pricey but soooo good...
Ghirardelli caramel filled chocolate squares are the best.
See’s has not really changed- it still tastes the same. Yet it is owned by the largest conglomerate in the US- Berkshire Hathaway.
See’s was a Christmas tradition in our home.
Sad that so many of the iconic US food products have been turned to crap. The switch from sugar to high fructose corn syrup started the trend and now the use of seed oils and flavor enhancers has pushed things over the edge. Those of us old enough to remember the taste of old time Coke, real chocolate and actual peanut butter are disappearing and the new generations who have never known the taste of the real stuff will be satisfied with these junk products.
Everybody is switching to cheaper ingredients, along with shrinkflation.
We’ll keep an eye out for it here.
Tillamuck is one around here.
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