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You might have known that two of the biggest chocolate candy companies in America are Hershey and Mars. Mars makes Snickers, Milky Way, 3 Musketeers, Twix; Hershey makes Kisses, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, Kit Kat, and of course, the Hershey bar. But did you know that M&Ms, which are now made by Mars, Inc., started out as a joint effort between these two fierce competitors? Hershey had full control of rationed chocolate during World War II, so when Forrest Mars, the son of Mars Candy Company founder Frank Mars, set out to create a chocolate pellet covered in a candy shell, he needed to partner with someone from Hershey. None other than Bruce Murrie, the son of Hershey’s president William Murrie, agreed to go into business with Mars, providing Hershey’s chocolate in return for a 20 percent stake in the company, called M&M Limited (after Mars & Murrie). Mars bought out Murrie’s interest in 1948 and became one of Hershey’s main competitors, but the candy’s name stuck.
Here’s What I Learned Yesterday:
Speaking of Mars and Hershey’s chocolate, did you know you can visit Hershey’s Chocolate World in Hershey, PA and not only learn all about how the company makes their chocolate in the factory tour; you can also sign up for a chocolate tasting seminar and later, in the gift shop, purchase a 5-pound Hershey bar or a 1 lb. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup? I should know – I’ve done all of those things. I’m fortunate enough to live within two hours’ drive of many of the best factory tours in the country, including Turkey Hill, Snyder’s, Utz, Crayola, and many more places that are willing to show you how they make their products right here in America.
Now it’s true that some of the factory tours you can visit around the country are not true glimpses of the actual manufacturing process; they do tend to gussy it up for the tourists. But at Turkey Hill, for example, they’ll let you make your own ice cream flavor in the lab and have as many free samples as you’d like – can’t argue with that! The point is, it can be very rewarding to see some of our country’s best consumer products being made, not just to see what goes into a product design or the mechanics of the assembly line (which are, admittedly, pretty cool) but also to get a little bit closer to the history of products that have been in America for decades if not a century or more.
Now, many of the factory tours near me are in Pennsylvania, which also happens to be the home of the Pennsylvania Dutch, also known as the Amish people. They’re actually German – Deutsch – not Dutch, but their shunning of modern technology has kept their culture relatively the same since they immigrated to America in the late 17th century. Recently, a college friend of my stepdaughter, who goes to university in Shanghai, was visiting from China during his study abroad in the U.S. On our way to the Turkey Hill Experience factory tour, we stopped at a nearby Amish market for pretzels.
Now, I don’t know if any of you listeners out there have experienced the unbridled joy of eating an Amish pretzel, but let me tell you – the Germans know their pretzels! As we walked around the market enjoying various handmade culinary delights, it struck me that my daughter’s friend was seeing a more authentic view of American culture than most visitors to our country get to experience. Because the Amish are still doing things the way they were done in early America before the Industrial Revolution, the attention to detail in their food and crafts and other goods is rarely duplicated these days.
By comparison, our factory tour seemed a little commercial if no less enjoyable for all the free ice cream, but even Turkey Hill has an American born and bred tradition going back to the Great Depression. And there are factory tours in pretty much every state in the union. In fact, if you’re wondering what tours may be available near you, you might want to check out factorytoursusa.com and click on your state. It’s a little outdated, but still informative. In Darrell’s home state of Oklahoma, for example, there’s Braum’s Ice Cream, which offers a tour of its processing plant and bakery on the Braum Family Farm in Tuttle, Oklahoma.
You may have noticed I’m focusing on food factories. I mean, seriously, you haven’t lived until you’ve tasted a Herr’s potato chip fresh off the line, still warm! That’s probably because I’ve always felt that the best way to experience a culture, American or otherwise, is through its food. In fact, when I travel for vacation, I usually judge the success of the trip based on how good the restaurants were that we visited. My family does not go to chain restaurants when we’re on holiday. It’s local or nothing! When you’re in Maine, you have a lobster roll. When you’re in Philly, you have a cheesesteak. And when you’re at the beach, you do not order a hamburger when there’s fresh seafood to be had.
The same goes for the melting pot culture out there. I hope you know where the best sushi restaurant is in your town or where you can get the most authentic Mexican food. Taco Bell is all well and good for fast food, but if you’re sitting down to order, make sure it’s the real deal.
So I’ve jumped around a bit here, but I think you see my point. Culture is important in all forms, not just in terms of food, but food is one of the best ways to experience what the culture around you has to offer.
Here’s what I learned.
America, at least since colonial times, may not have the deep cultural identity of its European origins or of the unfortunately supplanted culture of the Native Americans we displaced, but it does have a history that we can explore. And besides all the civil war battlefields and monuments and lighthouses that you can visit, one sure way to experience American innovation and ingenuity is by visiting a local factory. Many were companies founded by families who kept their legacy through several generations, and the tours can give you a great sense of living history where you get to see the end product that’s still around today.
So find those locally-owned small businesses or the big companies that started small in your area of the country. You’ll get to learn about industry, see some cool assembly lines, really understand where your food comes from, and engage in your community and your country.
Plus, free samples are always good. And don’t forget to visit the gift shop on your way out!
I’m Michael Ahr, and this has been stuff I learned yesterday.
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