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Daily Record
Daily Record
Lifestyle
Amber O'Connor & Mya Bollan

People left flabbergasted after learning M&M's meaning and family feud origins

Sweet treat lovers have been left shocked after learning the story behind M&M and the reason they got their name.

Foodies are wishing they found out the unlikely tale earlier that includes family feuds and unlikely alliances, with many tucking the explanation under food trivia belts.

The two M's stand for Mars and Murrie after the sweets were named after heirs and business collaborators Forrest Mars Sr. and Bruce Murrie. However, it was certainly not business as usual as Bruce was the son of Hershey executive William Murrie, while Forrest was the son of Mars founder, Frank C. Mars.

The dramatic tale continues as family drama plays out, leading to the pair collaborate in the "best story going" according to TikToker @condimentclaire.

In a clip posted on the social media site, the creator claimed the story began when Forrest E. Mars fell out with his dad, the original owner of Mars, reports the Mirror.

Forrest then took a trip to Europe where he spotted people enjoying chocolate covered in candy coating, according to reports.

However, the young man was not keen to share his idea with his dad as he planned to bring the concept to the US. The new idea resulted in Forrest turning to his family's rival, Hershey's.

And in good news for the chocolate loving world, Forrest found himself a willing collaborator, leading to the manufacturing of the M&M's we all know and love today.

The pair created M&M's, deciding to name the brand after themselves.

The history fan also claimed: "The reason it all popped off is they created it right before World War Two and in World War Two they made this deal with the government that in every soldier's bag were M&M's."

According to History.com, this move may be the reason behind the brand's success.

Giving some further insight into the chocolate's history, the site explains: "After the U.S. entered the war, the candies were exclusively sold to the military, enabling the heat-resistant and easy-to-transport chocolate to be included in American soldiers' rations.

"By the time the war was over and GIs returned home, they were hooked."

They weren't the only ones left flabbergasted by the story, with many history buffs sharing their thoughts on the tale.

Reacting to the educational TikTok video, one fan said: "Now this is history I'm interested in."

Another wrote: "Love history. Love food history even moreeeeee".

With a third commenting: "Dying to pull this answer out in a future trivia night. Thanks for that!"

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