The competition of chocolate companies

 I watched the documentary series The Food that built America via Amazon Prime Video, which was broadcast on the History Channel in the US.

I picked the topic about cereal makers from this series before, and I’d like to mention chocolate companies as well.

Milton Hershey apprenticed a confectioner instead of studying at a school because he was from a poor family.

He learned the craft of creating confections, and started a caramel company that had grown so big that he sold it for $1 million.

Hershey spent all of his money to establish the chocolate company and the town in Pennsylvania, where his workers live.

He had would like to provide milk chocolate to all people in the country even though it cost too much to manufacture it in this era.

He succeeded in developing the special process to sell “Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bar” for a reasonable price in 1900.

Hershey’s provided milk chocolate to other confectionery companies including Mars, Incorporated, which produces “Milky Way”.

William Murrie, the vice president of Hershey’s had proposed his boss to acquire their recipe and company, but Milton turned it down.

As “Milky Way” has been popular in the market, Hershey’s offered “Mr. Goodbar” to compete with them, and Mars, Inc produced "Snickers" to be against it.

Mars, Inc was run by Franc Mars and his son Forest, who was so ambitious that he was eager to expand business and beat Hershey’s.

Frank and Forest had often disagreed on the management of their company, and finally the son started his own business after he left Mars, Inc.

Forest Mars had invested in a new product, which were small, saucer-shaped chocolates coated with colorful candy.

He had invited William Murrie’s son as a co-founder, and established the company named M&M’s, which means Mars and Murrie.

Forest’s company, M&M’s acquired his father’s Mars, Inc and their confectionery brands after Frank had died.

Both companies, Hershey's and M&M's (Mars, Inc) were boosted during WWII, because the U.S. government had ordered a large amount of their products, and they were provided to soldiers on the battlefield.

That’s why chocolate became symbolic of American culture for people all over the world.