Who Invented the Snickers Candy Bar?

Mars Inc. is the world’s largest confectionery company and was established in the early 1900s by husband and wife, Frank and Ethyl Mars. So who invented the Snickers candy bar? The Snickers Candy Bar was created by the company in 1930.

Mars Candy Bars

The Mars corporation has produced many candy bars over so many decades. Kids and the kids at heart have long enjoyed treats such as the Mars Bar, Three Musketeers, Kudos, Dove Chocolates, Milky Way, M&Ms, Skittles, Twix, Star Burst and a whole lot more. The Mars headquarters is located in Virginia. Although many people may not be aware, the company not only produces a huge line of sweet confections but they have also ventured into the production of pet foods and other non-confectionery items.

How Snickers Got its Name

Now that you know who invented the Snickers bar, you may be wondering how the world famous chocolate treat got its name. Around the time during the Snickers invention, Ethel’s favorite horse died on their Tennessee farm (which was named after one of their candy bars, Milky Way.) Ethel’s horse was named Snickers. During a time wherein the company was brainstorming for a name of a new candy bar, Frank decided that if they could name a farm after a candy bar, why not name a candy bar after his wife’s favorite horse? Thus, the Snickers bar was born.

The Original Snickers Bar

The candy was made of peanut butter nougat topped with caramel and peanuts and then covered with milk chocolate. The original Snickers Bar, which weighed 58.7 grams, had 280 calories and 130 calories from fat. Others tried to reproduce the confection but didn’t have any success

Snickers Bars were originally sold in England and Ireland, where the candy's name was changed to “Marathon” Bar. Mars then changed its name to Snickers in 1990 making it rank third place in candy bar popularity.

Changes to the Snickers Bar

In 2004, the king size version of the Snickers bar began to be phased out in England and instead, was replaced by the twin bar pack variety. The twin pack was produced in order to comply with the September 2004 FDF or Food and Drink Federations’ “Manifesto for Food and Health.”

This is part of the manifesto of seven pledges of action encouraging the food and beverage industry to become more health conscious in the production of their products thereby having to reduce portion size, creating much clearer food labels, reduction of fat, sugar, and salt content.

By 2005, the king sized variety had been entirely phased out and replaced by the twin pack which was meant to be shared or to be consumed in more than one sitting. The twin pack weighs the same as the king size but was able to comply with the laws since it was designed to be shared or eaten at separate occasions.

Uses of Snickers Bars

The Snicker Bar has gone beyond the candy treat category and turned into a dessert ingredient that can transform ordinary food items into extra special and delectable ones. During the 2000s, deep fried candy bars including Mars and Snickers became very popular in state fairs.

There were also special treats served in Scotland’s staple fish and chips stores. Snicker bars would be dipped in batter and deep fried to golden perfection. This treat could be served as it was or with a scoop of ice cream.

The popular Cheesecake Factory restaurant also pays tribute to Snickers with its creation of the "Snicker's Bar Chunks and Cheesecake" which consists of the restaurant’s original cheesecake with whole chunks of Snickers baked right into it. The special dessert is then topped with peanuts, drizzled with chocolate sauce when served.

Snickers Bars come in many forms. Over the years, Mars Inc has released different products that feature the favorite candy bar. Such sweet confection include: Snickers Munch, Snickers Ice Cream bar, Snickers Ice Cream cone, Snickers Duo, Snickers Dark, Snickers Snickers Fudge Snickers fun size, Snickers Flapjack, Peanut Butter Snickers, Snickers Gold, Snickers Cake, and Snickers Chocolate Spread just to name a few.