Overview
- On Feb. 14, Brad Reese posted an open letter alleging Hershey is replacing milk chocolate and peanut butter across multiple Reese’s variants, citing Mini Hearts he called “not edible.”
- Hershey says the iconic Peanut Butter Cups are unchanged and that tweaks apply to select shapes and sizes to enable innovations.
- A company spokesperson confirmed Valentine’s Mini Hearts use a chocolate‑flavored coating, which by FDA rules cannot be labeled milk chocolate.
- Label checks show the flagship cups still list milk chocolate and peanuts first, while items like hearts and eggs list coatings or peanut butter crème, with a federal database reflecting recipe shifts for Eggs.
- Hershey rejects claims that overseas cups lack real chocolate, citing consistent recipes with region‑specific labeling, as cocoa cost volatility has pushed candy makers to test alternatives.