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Mars, Bounty, Milky Way, Twix, Snickers go non-vegetarian
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Some of the UK's best-selling chocolate bars, such as Mars and Twix, will no longer be suitable for vegetarians. The Vegetarian Society said the company's move was "incomprehensible" and that it was "extremely disappointed". . . . more
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A recipe
change means Snickers, Galaxy, Twix, Bounty, Mars will now contain
animal products
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We made a mistake. We apologise. We at Mars UK will ensure that a selection of your favourite brands . . . more | Masterfoods
have put a list of products of their website showing best before dates
on or after which the products will be suitable for vegetarians. . . . more |
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Mars,
Bounty, Milky Way, Twix, Snickers go non-vegetarian
The Vegetarian Society said it hoped Masterfoods would think again. A spokesman said: “We are very disappointed. “For some incomprehensible reason they are using animal products when all these items have previously been produced using vegetarian alternatives. “There are about three million vegetarians in the UK. Some are less careful than others but we no longer consider these Mars products to be vegetarian. We hope the company will reconsider this move.”Since the beginning of May, the confectioner has been using 'Rennet' — a substance extracted from the stomach of slaughtered newly-born calves — to produce the whey it needs for its products. Prior to May, it had been using a readily available vegetarian alternative to rennet. For
more details, please visit:
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Mars
starts using animal products Also affecting brands such as Snickers and Maltesers, owner Masterfoods said it had started to use animal product rennet to make its chocolate products. Masterfoods said the change was due to it switching the sourcing of its ingredients and the admission was a "principled decision" on its part. The Vegetarian Society said the company's move was "incomprehensible" and that it was "extremely disappointed". Masterfoods said it had started using rennet from 1 May and non-affected products had a "best before date" up to 1 October. Masterfoods' decision to use non-vegetarian whey is a backward step - Vegetarian Society
It will now also be found in Bounty, Minstrels and Milky Way products, and the ice cream versions of all Masterfoods' bars. "If the customer is an extremely strict vegetarian, then we are sorry the products are no longer suitable, but a less strict vegetarian should enjoy our chocolate," said Paul Goalby, corporate affairs manager for Masterfoods. "At a time when more and more consumers are concerned about the provenance of their food, Masterfoods' decision to use non-vegetarian whey is a backward step," it said in a statement. "Mars products are very popular with young people and many will be shocked to discover that their manufacture now relies on the extraction of rennet from the stomach lining of young calves," it added. Story
from BBC NEWS: Published:
2007/05/14 09:23:28 GMT
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At Mars UK we recently changed the source of some of the whey which is used in some of our chocolate products. We have received lots of feedback that this decision has made it difficult for some of you, especially those of you who are vegetarians, to continue to enjoy our products. We made a mistake. We apologise. The consumer is our boss. Therefore we listen to you and your feedback. As a company we value openness, honesty and diversity and we believe that anybody should be able to choose freely from our range of chocolate brands. But being sorry isn’t enough. Therefore we commit to you today, that we at Mars UK will ensure that a selection of your favourite brands – Mars bars, Snickers bars, Galaxy and Maltesers, will be suitable for vegetarians in the near future. To this effect we are starting to change our manufacturing process today. We will keep you informed of our progress against this commitment through regular updates on this website. Please accept our apology and keep talking to us, via
For
more details, please visit:
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Masterfoods have put a list of products of their website showing best before dates on or after which the products will be suitable for vegetarians. They state that the products will be available in stores in the next 2 to 3 weeks. Our current understanding is that any other Masterfoods confectionary product not on the list is unsuitable for vegetarians. For
more details, please visit:
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London:
Chocolate lovers who are also vegetarians are facing a stark choice:
either give up Mars bars or break their meat-free vows. And it’s
not only the Mars bar they will have to avoid — a recipe change
means Snickers, Galaxy, Twix, Bounty, Milky Way, Maltesers and Minstrels
also now contain animal products. The decision by manufacturer Masterfoods,
which makes three million Mars bars a day in Slough, Berkshire,
has prompted a backlash from vegetarian groups. 
Rennet,
a chemical sourced from calves' stomachs, is used in the production
of whey.