Who invented the Snickers chocolate bar?

The Snickers bar was created by the Mars family corporation in 1930 and the name itself comes from one of their favorite horses. The Snickers chocolate bar is made up of peanuts, nougat, caramel and milk chocolate. The 2.07 oz (58.7 g) Snickers Original Bar has 280 calories and 130 calories from fat. The double pack, king-size version has 220 calories per bar (47 g) with 100 calories from fat per serving.

Mars Inc. is the world’s largest confectionery company and was founded in the early 20th century by Frank C. Mars and his wife Ethyl Mars. They originally sold the Snickers bar in England and Ireland, but called it the “Marathon” bar. In 1990, Mars changed its name to Snickers and this name change moved the candy bar from ninth to third place in popularity.

The family also invented the Mars bar in 1936 with a European version that was slightly sweeter and lacked the almonds. Until recently, the Mars bar was the most popular candy bar of the 20th century. In 2000, the Mars bar was renamed Snickers Almond and within 2 years, sales plummeted and Snickers became the most popular bar in the world and the best-selling candy bar in history.

In 2004, the king-size version of the Snickers bar began to phase out in England and was replaced by a double bar pack. This twin pack was designed to comply with the Food and Drink Federation and its 2004 manifesto urging the food industry to reduce sugar, salt and fat, provide clear food labels and be more health conscious. The twin pack is the same weight as the king-size version, but is designed to be shared or stored.

This is a stark contrast to the fried chocolate bars that became popular in the early 2000s. These fried Snickers and Mars bars typically weighed in at over 850 calories per bar!

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