{"id":896403,"date":"2026-04-02T09:12:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T14:12:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/02\/hershey-u-turns-as-real-chocolate-makes-a-comeback\/"},"modified":"2026-04-02T09:12:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T14:12:19","slug":"hershey-u-turns-as-real-chocolate-makes-a-comeback","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/02\/hershey-u-turns-as-real-chocolate-makes-a-comeback\/","title":{"rendered":"Hershey u\u2011turns as real chocolate makes a comeback"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Recipes <\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div><picture><source  media=\"(min-width: 1059px)\"><source  media=\"(min-width: 769px) and (max-width: 1058px)\"><source  media=\"(max-width: 768px)\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" alt=\"recipes Hershey Town street lights shaped like chocolate kisses - Hershey, Pennsylvania.\" src=\"https:\/\/www.confectionerynews.com\/resizer\/v2\/PFS36IDTKJEO3GGMITUKUVF2JY.jpg?auth=c75a3b2936f56e242dba88834b244ca0a343846e39780c25a178c4013d3e8e3b&#038;smart=true\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/picture><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Hershey u-turns on real chocolate.<\/p>\n<p>(Image: Getty\/gsheldon)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Recipes Hershey says it\u2019s bringing real chocolate back to parts of its portfolio \u2013 could this small switch signal something much bigger for the confectionery industry?<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<article id=\"pn_rw\" data-clarity-region=\"article\">\n<h2>Recipes Hershey real chocolate strategy \u2013 summary<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Hershey will reintroduce real chocolate to select Reese\u2019s and Hershey\u2019s products<\/li>\n<li>Move affects under three percent of Reese\u2019s items across portfolio<\/li>\n<li>CEO says changes align brand consistency and improve ingredient authenticity<\/li>\n<li>Company also reformulating KitKat for creamier chocolate and cleaner labels<\/li>\n<li>Shift signals wider industry pressure towards quality upgrades and transparency<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The Hershey Company has announced it\u2019s returning to real chocolate.<\/p>\n<p>The confectionery giant has faced mounting backlash over ingredients switching, in recent years. Most notably from the grandson of Reese\u2019s founder, Harry Burnett Reese, who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.confectionerynews.com\/Article\/2026\/02\/17\/hershey-blasted-by-reeses-family-over-core-ingredient-changes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel title=\"https:\/\/www.confectionerynews.com\/Article\/2026\/02\/17\/hershey-blasted-by-reeses-family-over-core-ingredient-changes\/\">accused the company of changing essential ingredients in Reese\u2019s products<\/a>, which are now owned by Hershey.<\/p>\n<p>Is it possible that negative feedback has led to a major u-turn?<\/p>\n<p>During the company\u2019s Investor Day on Tuesday, the maker of big-name brands including Twizzlers, Hershey\u2019s Kisses, and Reese\u2019s Peanut Butter Cups said it will change the chocolate in a small portion of its Reese\u2019s products.<\/p>\n<p>It will swap out a chocolate compound coating as part of a return to using \u201cclassic milk and dark chocolate recipes\u201d in all Reese\u2019s and Hershey\u2019s products by 2027.<\/p>\n<div>\n<h3>What is chocolate compound coating?<\/h3>\n<div>\n<p>Chocolate compound coating is a chocolate substitute, made from cocoa powder, sweeteners, and vegetable fats (such as palm kernel and coconut oil) instead of cocoa butter. <\/p>\n<p>It does&#8217;t require tempering, sets quickly, and remains stable at room temperature, making it increasingly popular with confectionery manufacturers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>But, while this might seem like a significant shift by the multinational, it amounts to less than 3% of Reese\u2019s products and a fraction of Hershey\u2019s overall portfolio.<\/p>\n<p>Why such a small percentage?<\/p>\n<p>Because, as it turns out, classic Hershey\u2019s chocolate bars and Reese\u2019s Peanut Butter Cups already use pure milk and dark chocolate. The products requiring change make up a small section of the portfolio \u2013 mini Reese\u2019s cups and shapes, the Reese\u2019s Fast Break candy bar, and certain foil-wrapped Reese\u2019s shapes.<\/p>\n<p>Moreover, Hershey CEO Kirk Tanner said the decision to return to real chocolate on these products was made shortly after he took the role last summer \u2013 before Brad Reese voiced his concerns.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRight when I started with the company, we did a deep dive across our portfolio,\u201d said Tanner. \u201cWe\u2019re going to make some small investments to really align the portfolio to what the brand stands for.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He went on to say that \u201cconsistency\u201d across the brand is important. <\/p>\n<p>Hershey has also said it\u2019s changing its KitKat recipe \u2013 a product it produces under a licence agreement with Nestl\u00e9 \u2013 for a \u201ccreamier-tasting chocolate\u201d and is \u201con track\u201d to remove all artificial colours from its products by the end of 2027.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHershey is committed to making products consumers love and that means continually reviewing our recipes to meet evolving tastes and preferences,\u201d said a spokesperson for Hershey. \u201cA series of enhancements taking effect in 2027 reflect that commitment.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div><picture><source  media=\"(max-width: 768px)\"><source  media=\"(min-width: 769px) and (max-width: 1058px)\"><source  media=\"(min-width: 1059px)\"><img decoding=\"async\" title=\"recipes\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" alt=\"recipes Close up shot of a Hershey's Chocolate Bar.\" src=\"https:\/\/www.confectionerynews.com\/resizer\/v2\/CW75O4F4AFG4XIL5HAOVGAH2QE.jpg?auth=6890d8faf113310eba507e7c1166be041831229d38e7b77e5842f0e2f96b6092&#038;smart=true\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/picture><\/div><figcaption><span>Classic Hershey\u2019s chocolate bars and Reese\u2019s Peanut Butter Cups already use pure milk and dark chocolate. (Image: Getty\/sandoclr)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Recipes Hershey\u2019s strategy<\/h2>\n<p>The significance of Hershey\u2019s move lies less in the scale of the reformulation than in what it signals about the company\u2019s direction. <\/p>\n<p>Reintroducing real chocolate indicates a strategic move towards quality ingredients, with consumer trust in mind.<\/p>\n<p>And, if successful, it could encourage other brands to follow suit, as Hershey is certainly not the only company to make moves away from real chocolate.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.confectionerynews.com\/Article\/2026\/04\/01\/hershey-returns-to-real-chocolate-in-reeses-products\/?utm_source=RSS_Feed&#038;utm_medium=RSS&#038;utm_campaign=RSS\" class=\"button purchase\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Recipes Hershey u-turns on real chocolate. (Image: Getty\/gsheldon) Recipes Hershey says it\u2019s bringing real chocolate back to parts of its portfolio \u2013 could this small switch signal something much bigger for the confectionery industry? Recipes Hershey real chocolate strategy \u2013 summary Hershey will reintroduce real chocolate to select Reese\u2019s and Hershey\u2019s products Move affects under [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":896404,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35593,90489],"tags":[131512],"class_list":{"0":"post-896403","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-hershey","8":"category-u-turns","9":"tag-popular-recipes"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/896403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=896403"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/896403\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/896404"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=896403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=896403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=896403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}