Hershey Launches “Simpler” Kisses With Cleaner Ingredients

HERSHEY, Pa.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Today, The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) announced that Holiday Hershey’s Kisses Milk Chocolates and Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bars, made with simple ingredients and no artificial flavor, will launch nationwide this holiday season. These are some of the first products from Hershey to transition to simpler ingredients, a commitment announced earlier this year to transition products to ingredients with which consumers are familiar. Holiday Hershey’s Kisses Milk Chocolates packages are also the first to pilot the SmartLabel™. With this new mobile tool you can scan a QR code to instantly get detailed product information, from ingredient and nutrition facts to allergens.

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The SmartLabel™ QR code is an innovative web-based platform that allows consumers to access a wealth of information about products that is not limited by the size and space of packaging. Hershey led this industry-wide collaboration to create a universal solution that gives people access to information about where their food comes from and what goes into making it, at the touch of their fingertips.

“We started making our great-tasting chocolate in 1894 with ingredients you might find in your pantry, like cocoa, milk, sugar and vanilla, and we’re continuing that tradition today,” said Mary-Ann Somers, vice president and general manager of US Confection, The Hershey Company. “People want to see ingredients that they know and are familiar with in their foods and we’re listening. Our commitments to simple ingredients and transparency continue with some of our most popular products, Hershey’s Kisses Milk Chocolates and Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bars.”

The new, simple Hershey’s Kisses Milk Chocolates and Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bars are made with fresh milk from local Pennsylvania farms, cocoa beans sourced responsibly from West Africa, pure cane sugar and natural flavor, with these ingredients reflected on-pack.

“There is a growing expectation for companies to provide more transparency about all that goes into their products and we’re at the forefront, piloting the SmartLabel™ this holiday season,” said Somers.

Join the conversation about Hershey’s ingredients at HersheySharedGoodness.com or on Twitter @HersheyCompany.

About The Hershey CompanyThe Hershey Company, headquartered in Hershey, Pa., is a global confectionery leader known for bringing goodness to the world through its chocolate, sweets, mints and other great-tasting snacks. Hershey has approximately 22,000 employees around the world who work every day to deliver delicious, quality products. The company has more than 80 brands around the world that drive more than $7.4 billion in annual revenues, including such iconic brand names as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses, Jolly Rancher, Ice Breakers and Brookside. Building on its core business, Hershey is expanding its portfolio to include a broader range of delicious snacks. The company remains focused on growing its presence in key international markets while continuing to extend its competitive advantage in North America.

At Hershey, goodness has always been about more than delicious products. For more than 120 years, Hershey has been committed to operating fairly, ethically and sustainably. Hershey founder, Milton Hershey, created the Milton Hershey School in 1909 and since then the company has focused on giving underserved children the skills and support they need to be successful. Today, the company continues this social purpose through ‘Nourishing Minds,’ a global initiative that provides basic nutrition to help children learn and grow. From neighborhoods across the United States to the streets of Shanghai and Mumbai and villages of West Africa, our goal is to nourish one million minds by 2020.