Snickers (History, FAQ, Marketing & Commercials)

One of the best-known and most familiar candy bars in the US, Snickers! The candy bar has been around since 1930 and has delighted people who love nutty, caramelly and chocolatey treats. Snickers bars are still sold everywhere in the US, from movie theaters to grocery stores, and are one of the most familiar products made by the Mars company.

If you have loved Snickers for years, you probably were not aware of just how long this candy bar has been delighting people who love a good snack. If you want to learn more, we will dive into the details of this popular candy bar’s history.

History

Snickers were introduced in 1930. The candy was named after the Mars family’s favorite horse at the time. The nougat, peanuts, and caramel ingredients were a popular combination. The candy bar was sold as the Marathon bar in the UK and in Ireland all the way until 1990. At that time, the bar was aligned to be named the same thing as the US version.

Mars briefly marketed another candy bar of a different type under the Marathon name in the US during the 70s, so the simplification of the name was intended to reduce confusion about the products.

When Snickers was first sold, it caused a lot of controversy for the price that it was sold for. At the time, most candies sold for 5 cents. Snickers were offered at 20 cents apiece, which was held to be a ridiculously high price. This clearly did not hold the 30s candy bar back, but it did make quite a stir at the time and elevated the candy to a notoriety point that might have helped to increase attention on the product.

Over time, Snickers became so popular that it was sold in different forms. There were Snickers minis, a dark chocolate version, ice cream products, and even protein bars added to the lineup of Snickers products. The UK required that candy bars be downsized with the Manifesto for Food and Health of 2004, and the king-size version of the candy was no longer sold there after that date.

The original bars weighed 62.5g in the UK. After this manifesto, the weight was reduced to 58g. By 2013 the bar weighed in at 48g in the UK. In the US, the weight has held steady at 52.7g for quite some time. Australian versions of the Snickers candy bar were originally made locally and weighed in at 53g, but the production was moved to China in 2010 and the weight was reduced to 50g.

Scotland sells deep-fried Snickers at many of their fish and chips shops and this tradition has made the leap to American state fairs as of the early 2000s. Famous UK Chef Antony Worrall Thompson made a Snickers Pie in 2012 that was rated as the unhealthiest dessert ever. Each slice came in at 1,250 calories!

Snickers were named the official snack of the 1984 Olympics after Mars paid $5 million to secure that status for the candy treat. This launched new attention for the candy and helped to make it an international snack.

Snickers have always been really good at creating memorable and effective ad campaigns and the various different versions of the ads that have been made over the years are readily seen online. There are so many good ads that it is hard to pick just one!

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You can also buy Snickers at Old Time Candy by clicking the image below.

Ingredients

• Milk chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, chocolate, skim milk, lactose, milk fat, soy lecithin, artificial flavor)
• Peanuts
• Corn syrup
• Sugar
• Palm oil
• Skim milk
• Lactose
• Salt
• Egg whites
• Artificial flavor

This is a great candy bar as far as simplicity goes and it’s nice to be able to recognize all of the ingredients that are listed!

Snickers bars are made with 16 peanuts per bar, which means that the company needs more than 100 tons of peanuts to make the 15 million bars that are made each day. This heavy dose of nutty goodness has long been the brand’s way to associate the candy bar with a healthy snack that provides lasting energy for your sports needs and brainy activities like studying or working.

Nutrition

Serving Size:	1 bar (2 oz) (57g)	% Daily Value*
Amount Per Serving
Calories	280
Total Fat	14g	22%
Saturated Fat	5.2g	26%
Trans Fat	0.3g
Polyunsaturated Fat	1.7g
Monounsaturated Fat	4.5g
Cholesterol	7.4mg	2%
Sodium	136mg	6%
Total Carbohydrates	35g	12%
Dietary Fiber	1.3g	5%
Sugars	29g
Protein	4.3g
Vitamin D	0mcg	0%
Calcium	53mg	4%
Iron	0mg	2%
Potassium	184mg	4%
Caffeine	4.6mg

• The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet. 2000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Wrapper Design

The Snickers wrapper design has not changed much in the last 40 years or so. The candy has almost always been sold in stripped-down and rather plain wrappers that are brown in color. The only variance for this color scheme is the unique varieties like Snickers White.

These candy bars are sold in brown wrappers with the blue lettering on a white background that most people would recognize immediately as being on a Snickers bar. When Marathon was sold in the UK, the wrappers looked much the same as the US Snickers wrappers. This consistent branding is much like the branding that M&Ms have always stuck with. Keeping the wrapper the same helps people to know for sure what candy they are getting.

While the wrappers of Snickers bars are a little boring, the branding is immediately obvious and you can spot a Snickers bar from a mile away. Even the minis and the small size bars are immediately apparent in a large bowl as Halloween candy. People will reach for Snickers before other candies, largely because they recognize the wrappers and know precisely what they can expect from this candy that has been around since the 30s.

Varieties

There are various forms that you can enjoy Snickers in as well as various different varieties that are sold.

• Snickers Ice Cream products – ice cream bars and brownie ice cream bars
• Snickers Almond
• Snickers Brownie
• Snickers protein bar – original, peanut butter, white chocolate, and crisp
• Snickers White
• Snicker Crisp
• Snickers Peanut Butter
• Minis
• Bites
• Snickers Mix
• Hazelnut
• Crisp Duo
• Duo bar
• yard

Some of these varieties are only sold regionally, and the more common mainstay flavors will be the ones that you will be most likely to see when you head to the movie theater or look for Snickers products at your local stores. The unique varieties are often sold online, however. You might be able to source many of these unique flavor offerings from sites like Amazon and other online sellers.

The Snickers bites and minis are sold in the highest numbers around Halloween when they are used for Trick or Treating, but you can get these smaller sizes year-round when you order online. There are also some limited-edition popcorn products and other Snickers flavored items that crop up from time to time for a year or so.

Snickers Ice Cream

Among the various different products that are a part of the Snickers product line up, the ice cream products that Snickers makes are some of the most beloved. After all, ice cream and chocolate just go together, and a Snickers Bar offers most of the best parts of an ice cream sunday in a candy bar. Snickers Ice Cream Bars are sold in various sizes, and the company has cleverly packaged these ice cream bars to look like candy bars. The wrappers on the ice cream bars in all sizes look just like the regular Snickers Bars, which makes them instantly recognizable. 

The 2.8 oz bar is probably the most common ice cream bar size to find in grocery stores or at other places like gas stations, but you can also enjoy Snickers ice cream in 2 oz bars. If you are passionate about your Snickers Ice Cream enjoyment, you can get a 5-count box of 2 oz bars as well.

Various box sizes actually exist as well, so you can get the aforementioned 5-count box, or a 12-count box of the 2 oz bars. There is also a 6-count box of 2 oz bars on offer at some retailers. For people who don’t like an ice cream bar, the company has made pints of the delicious treat, and these even include caramel swirls, chocolate peanuts, and Snickers Bar pieces.

Snickers Duo

When King size candy bars became an issue due to the increased attention to sugar intake in people’s daily diet, Snickers decided to get creative to try to make up for the King size bar going away. The Manifesto for Food and Health in the UK created seven pledges that were intended to make food and drink healthier. Candy bar companies everywhere panicked and tried to make a new plan that would help them to sell large candy bars but under the guise of smaller and healthier bars.

Since portion size had to be reduced to meet the guidelines that were set forth. The solution that Snickers came up with in the UK was the “Duo” Bar. This was actually essentially a King size bar split into two bars to reduce the caloric intake from one total amount to half the total. The weight of the bars was reduced, and the two bars allowed the company to claim that each bar was within the new guidelines.

Snickers leaned on the fact that the bars could be shared and definitely meant to distract consumers from the fact that eating both of them was the same as eating a King Size candy bar. There were even step-by-step instructions on the wrappers that showed how to split the candy bar up to share it. Snickers were barely even transparent about the fact that they were making these adjustments to get around the new regulations for large candy bars. They all but said that they were required to make the changes but did not want to do away with the King Size bar in their product line.

The King Size candy bar has continued to come under attack and increased attention to saturated fats, sugars, and other ingredients in candies. Many candy companies have come up with various creative solutions to meet the new demand of these changing regulations. This was a very transparent effort, but this was likely due to the fact that Snickers felt very secure in their market position. They knew that they needed to meet the new market halfway, and they did so, albeit grudgingly.

Snickers Shakers

Among the stranger things that Snickers has made in recent years is the Snickers Shaker. This little jar of Snickers flavoring includes chocolate, peanut, and caramel flavors, all made to be shaken like seasonings onto your favorite foods.

The company states that Shakers are made to top ice cream, and other candies, and even can be added to drinks if you want to make them Snickers flavored. While the idea has some merit, there is something a bit strange about what looks for all the world like a large jar of meat seasoning containing something sweet and sugary.

The Snickers Shaker product will be sold in select retailers as the company tests out the popularity of this new snacking seasoning, but you should be able to track it down online if you really want to give it a try.

Snickers Yard

If you are tired of the normal size Snickers bar, you need to check out the Snickers Yard. Made in connection with an NFL sponsorship, this huge candy treat is made from about 18 Snickers bars combined into one massive candy bar. This is a shareable candy treat that puts you in mind of a massive sub sandwich more than a candy bar.

Since the promotion of this product is built on the concept of tailgating and sharing snacks with friends before and during the game, it’s easy to understand why the product was made in this way.

If you want to have a Snickers Yard on offer at your Super Bowl party, you will need to be sure to order it online. You might also have to do a little digging to find this rare candy product since this is not something that is on the shelves at too many stores around the United States.

Snickers Trees

While many people immediately think about peanut butter cups that have been shaped into Easter eggs, Christmas trees, and bats, one of the most overlooked products in the Snickers lineup could give this classic holiday snack a run for its money.

Snickers does actually make Snickers trees during the holiday season and these delightful little candy trees make great stocking stuffers. This is a Snickers bar that has been made to look just like a little Christmas tree which is delightful. As with the other unique Snickers products that have been discussed before this one, you will probably have to order this little snack online in order to use it to stuff your stockings.

Snickers White and Snickers Xtreme

Snickers Xtreme is one of the more unusual and less common candy bars that is sold inside the snickers lineup. This product is made to have more caramel and more peanuts than the traditional bars, which makes it ideal for people who are really passionate about these parts of the candy bar’s recipe. This candy bar is also sold a bit like a Twix bar, with two candy bars inside one wrapper. This is the only Snickers product that is sold in this way, so if you love that design from the Twix bar family, you will be really happy with this marketing choice.

Snickers White is just like a regular Snickers bar, except the milk chocolate has been replaced with white chocolate. This changes the flavor profile of the bar a lot, which makes this one of the more polarizing flavor offerings in the Snickers bar family. This can be a really fun way to change things up if you are in the mood for something sweet that is not made with milk chocolate, but you should be aware that this Snickers bar is quite rich when compared to the regular recipe.

Snickers White is not on offer in all markets, and you might have to do a little digging to find a place to order it from online if you live in the US. White chocolate has always struggled to find a niche in the US market, but in European or other markets, it tends to perform much better. This means that your best bet for a Snickers White could be an order that has to make quite a journey to get to you!

All of these unique flavors are not likely to make it into snack-size or mini-size variety bags anytime soon either. If you want to try these really special flavor variations on the classic Snickers bar, you will need to do a little leg work online to source them and ship them to the US. However, these special treats are worth the effort for most passionate candy lovers.

Australian Recall

In 2000, there were thousands of Snickers and Mars bars that had to be pulled off shelves in Australia and New South Wales. This was because there had been a series of letters released that stated that these candy bars had been poisoned. Mars was sent a letter from an unidentified individual stating that this person was planting poisoned bars at random on store shelves.

The last letter that was sent included a Snickers that was tested. It was laced with rat poison. The letters had stated that there were seven more candy bars that had been placed in the same way that were being placed on shelves to be sold to the general public. Mars felt like the only option that they had was to pull the product off the shelves. This was never because of a demand for money or any other kind of ransom. Mars was just concerned that there was truth in the story, and they did not want anyone to eat their product and suffer harm.

This recall did not impact sales or products in any other part of the world, but the news of this issue was the first time in many years that something like this had come to the attention of the general public. There were some issues like this with the food supply in the 80s, but these kinds of threats had waned over the years since the original rash of threats in the US and other markets. The way that Mars chose to handle the problem was very responsible, and they deserve to be applauded for taking this step to keep their consumers safe.

The Success of the Snickers Bar

Snickers claim on their website that the candy bar passed $1 billion in sales in the US in 2013. Mars claims that they make 15 million bars a day. This is a vastly successful candy bar that has continued to be more and more popular every year. It is one of the best candy bars on the market today, and there are very few competitors that could even try to take this candy bar on. Snickers have cemented its place in this market both by having an excellent product and by advertising this excellent product better than anyone else in their market space.

For a candy bar that was named after a horse, this is a very exciting place to have ended up! Candy bars like this that were originally made in someone’s kitchen comprise a huge part of the candy market. Snickers is one of those rare bars that combines all the best kinds of sweets in one handy snack. Add to this the obvious taste appeal of this candy bar to the really incredible marketing plan behind it, and you have a recipe for major success.

The creator of the Snickers Bar made so much money off the product that he was able to breed horses and buy a 3,000-acre farm that he named Milky Way Farms. This was located in Tennessee and was a testimony to the success of a candy bar that would become exponentially more successful over time. The candy bar market has changed many times over the years, but the candy product that Frank Mars dreamed up in the kitchen of his home has survived all of these changes.

Snickers knows just how to stay on the leading edge of the marketing options of their products, and they even boldly claim on their site that the 2021 release of the Snickers Brownie Bar created a chance for World Peace. How can you argue with a candy company that knows how to deliver these kinds of one-liners? Mars knows just how to keep people interested and on top of their amazing advertising efforts, and despite some stumbles related to their Super Bowl XLI ad, they have continued to come up with new and interesting ways to advertise their product.

Pictures

Commercials

Snickers have always had an amazing ad team behind the product and the memorable and exciting ads that they have made are a big part of why the candy is so recognizable. In the early 80s, the tagline was “It’s too satisfying” and the focus was on the peanuts and the other healthy ingredients that were in the bars. This link between Snickers bars and a healthy snack that would give you energy was made forever at this stage and the ad campaigns that have been made ever since have leaned on this connection.

In the mid-90s, the ad campaigns used the tagline, “Hungry? Why Wait?” and showed sports figures and hungry kids eating Snickers to get them through challenging situations that required that they be energized and alert.

One famous ad campaign was done in 2007 and featured Henry VIII declaring a Snickers Feast. The commercials were revised and created in a series that continued the theme as the feast continued on. A controversial ad was created for the 2007 Superbowl which showed two mechanics accidentally kissing while eating a Snickers and then proceeding to perform all kinds of antics to prove they were manly.

Mr. T starred in Snickers ads in the UK where he rode a tank and shot at a runner. There were various versions of this ad that ran in the 2000s in the UK. NASCAR was also affiliated with the Snickers brand and there were a series of ads that featured Kyle Busch and other race car drivers.

The most famous ad campaign associated with Snickers has been the “You’re not you when you’re hungry” campaign. This clever campaign design has been rehashed and used since 2010 when the first commercial with this tagline was used for the treat.

This campaign features people acting in ridiculous ways and not like themselves until they eat a Snickers and resume their normal abilities and appearance. Betty White and some other famous people have been used in these ads and they have been lastingly popular. The most recent version of this ad style has been the 2020 version of the ad which used the tagline, “Confused? Maybe you just need a Snickers”.

Snickers have had many Superbowl ads:

Here is an Olympics commercial:

A Mr. T Ad:

Some great classic commercials that have made the brand stand out:

FAQ