The average American will indulge in an ice cream treat 28.5 times per year. But many consumers are not aware of exactly what comes in those frozen treats, so one manufacturer is trying to do what they can to change that.
Mars Inc., the manufacturer of popular Snickers bars, Milky Ways, Dove chocolates, Skittles, Starbursts, and Twix bars, is considering a limit on their products’ sugar levels, including eliminating their MandMs candies from popular McDonald’s McFlurrys.
The company is concerned that their products, namely the McDonald’s McFlurry, the Burger King Snickers pie, and the Dairy Queen Blizzard, all exceed the daily recommended amount of sugar put forth by the U.S. government.
In order to combat the amount of sugar people consume from Mars Inc.’s products, the company has publicly announced they will limit sugar in all their treats to match guidelines from the World Health Organization. They are also in talks with nutrition councils in the United States and the United Kingdom.
This is not the first time Mars Inc. has taken a stand to prevent sugar intake throughout the country. In 2008 Mars was the first confectionery company to list calories and sugar on the front of their chocolate bars.
In 2013 they stopped selling king-sized candy bars, and just earlier this year they warned customers not to eat their Dolmino pasta sauce more than once a week due to its high fat, salt, and sugar content.
As reported on Quartz, Mars is working to promote a healthier environment for consumers across the globe by limiting the sugar in all of their products. Mars spokesman Jonathan Mudd said in a statement that “This commitment… applies to all Mars branded products. We are now working alongside our suppliers and customers to bring this commitment to life.”
A 12-ounce McFlurry with MandMs contains 650 calories and 89 grams of sugar, compared to the snack-sized portion containing 430 calories and 59 grams of sugar.
This sugar reduction has the ability to affect the health of many consumers. In 2014 there were more than 250 McDonald’s in New York City alone, each reporting to serve thousands of people a day.
