So long, king-sized Snickers: Mars to set calorie limit on chocolate
(CBS) Fans of king-sized Snickers and Twix bars may want to stock up. According to Reuters, the candy maker Mars Inc. plans to impose a 250-calorie limit on its chocolate products by the end of next year.
Mars spokeswoman Marlene Machut told Reuters the company plans to stop shipping any chocolate product that exceeds 250 calories by the end of 2013 as part of the company's "broad-based commitment to health and nutrition."
Reuters said the news means that the 540-calorie king-size Snickers bar will be on it's way out.
But what about the normal-sized ones you'd find in a convenience store or vending machine? According to Mars, a normal Snickers bar contains 280 calories, along with 14 grams of fat.
NPR reports those bars will also undergo a makeover and will lose about 11 percent in size to meet the 250-calorie limit. Mars told NPR that there's no decision on whether the bars will be shorter or slimmer.
A Twix bar, meanwhile, contains 250 calories, 12 grams of fat, and meets the new criteria.
For king-size shoppers who like to get the most chocolate out of their purchase, Mars told NPR it would replace the big bars with bags of two to four smaller bars to "enable sharing or saving a portion for later."
"The issue is 'Big' food, not 'Bad' food," Mars says in a 2009 corporate statement when it reduced candy bar sizes in Australia. "The consumer is not demanding change to chocolate. However, these are times when we have to make decisions that are right and are for the long-term sustainability of our consumers and to provide leadership to the industry."
What do you think about the move? Will you miss king-sized bars?
