Posted on 04/02/2026 5:08:32 AM PDT by Twotone
The grandson of the inventor of the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, who has publicly criticized The Hershey Company for tinkering with the classic formula in its spinoff products, appears to have gotten some sweet revenge.
The candy company has announced that it will return to using “classic milk and dark chocolate recipes” in all its Reese’s and Hershey’s products by 2027.
"If this is true, the people who deserve the credit are the loyal fans who were alarmed by what Hershey was doing," Brad Reese told NBC News on Wednesday. "But I am seeing a lot of red flags here. I think what Hershey is trying to do here is change with PR narrative."
Reese, whose demands that Hershey stop skimping on chocolate went viral in February, said he trusts his taste buds more than he trusts the company that produces iconic candies that bear his family name.
"If something like the Valentine’s Day Reese’s Mini Heart still doesn't taste like real milk chocolate next year, I'll know they're lying," he said.
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnews.com ...
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Hershey quality has gone way down in recent years. Like everything else, cut corners to increase margin.
What a concept. Put chocolate in chocolate.
Hershey should never have outsourced anything. Even though cocoa is not an American product, peanuts and other basic ingredients are grown here.
When I was a kid there were more candy companies and more true variety. Now we have many varieties of Snickers but less real choices. Back in the day, Mounds and Almond Joy were produced by Peter Paul. Baby Ruth and Butterfinger were produced by Curtiss. Paydays and others were produced by Hollywood Candy Company. Now the giant corporations control candy to a greater extent.
Lesser-known bars like Zagnut (A Hershey product) and Goo Goo Clusters (Nashville’s Standard Candy Company) are still available but not as common.
I speak as an accountant - Quit letting the accountants run your business. You sell quality regardless of your product. If you make decisions based solely on financials you will destroy the quality of your product and eventually your business.
I feel like an idiot making this statement because it is so fundamental to business, but so many CEOs have lost their way having been led astray by quarterly profit numbers.
In my youth I saved up 500 in paper coin value for 10 Mallo Cups free. They arrived in mid-July. Just a gooey mess, so I shared with my brothers and we ate it with spoons. LOL
You got your peanut butter in my chocolate!
Ha! Order chocolate at Christmas and not on Independence Day.
“I’m Officer Reeses. What happened here?”
That is a near daily conversation I have with my accountant son. I try to explain how short term profit decisions can damage the long term health of a company. Unfortunately, I think he needs to be burned before it sinks in.
“In Search of Excellence” in 1980’s - one of best business books ever written.
When you let the accountants in a company make the decisions - invariably thinking they will lower costs and increase profits - the exact opposite happens every single time.
Profits in a company are almost always simply the best metric there is........
To indicate how well you treat humans. First, your employees, second your customers.
Former CEO of technology company in the 80’s & 90’s.......
They'd better not mess with See's Candies.
Most chocolate is garbage now, even the up scale brands like Lindt. I will only eat Moser Roth now, which is still true to the original recipe.
-SB
My kid lives in Nashville and during every visit I pickup 2, 4 packs of Goo Goo Clusters. Love those things. Also during the trip is a stop a Buc-ee’s to pickup their delicious Buc-ee’s Overbites. An overbite is a hockey puck sized Resse’s Cup, but made with Dark Chocolate, or Chocolate n Caramel, Chocolate n Truffle, they are to die for and they seem to be real chocolate. Buc-ee’s Overbites put Reese’s to shame.
I know of a similar issue from nearly 25 years ago at a Big 3 automaker I was working with. The engineers had lamented an accounting demanded cheapening of bolts, which saved 1.5 cents per bolt, but, even though the cheaper one just “met requirements” on paper, it had no reserve capacity for forces.
It helped show that automaker had a reason things broke or fell apart more often than other automakers, in subsequent years.
Yes! It happens to chemical companies to. Key product decisions should be based on technology. Accounting and financials should be used as measures of success or failure. Not as drivers for change.
Using chocolate to make chocolate. Genius idea.
I’m an accountant also. Totally agree with your analysis.
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