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| Product type | Confectionery |
|---|---|
| Owner | Mars, Incorporated |
| Country | United States |
| Introduced | 1932; 93 years ago (1932)[1] |
| Website | 3musketeers.com |
3 Musketeers is acandy bar made in the United States and Canada byMars, Incorporated. It is a candy bar consisting of chocolate-covered, fluffy, whippednougat. It is similar to the globalMilky Way bar as well as the American version of the Milky Way bar (only without the latter'scaramel topping).
Introduced in 1932, the 3 Musketeers Bar was the third brand produced and manufactured by M&M/Mars. Originally, each bar contained three flavors—chocolate,strawberry andvanilla[2]—hence the name, which was derived from the 1844 novelThe Three Musketeers byAlexandre Dumas. Rising costs andwartimerestrictions on sugar saw the vanilla and strawberry pieces phased out, leaving only the more popular chocolate.[3] The bars cost five cents when they were introduced, and they were marketed as one of the largest chocolate bars available.[citation needed]
To mark the 75th anniversary of the introduction of the candy bar, Mars introduced 3 Musketeers Mint, the firstbrand extension, in August 2007.[4] Also in 2007, Mars produced a limited-edition "Autumn Minis Mix" 3 Musketeers. It featured French Vanilla, Mocha Cappuccino and Strawberry.[5] This was followed by Cherry 3 Musketeers for 2008, and Raspberry 3 Musketeers and Orange 3 Musketeers forEaster 2008. Orange was coated in milk chocolate, while the cherry and raspberry were coated with dark chocolate.[6][7] In 2019, Mars released their latest flavor, the 3 Musketeers Birthday Cake.[8]
The candy is made of a whipped nougatmousse formed into very large slabs, which are cut to size andenrobed in milk chocolate. The nougat chocolate center is made by whipping egg whites until they are light and frothy. Sugar syrup is then added, stabilizing the foam and creating mousse. Other flavoring ingredients are then added to the mousse to create specific flavors.[9]
The candy is made inChicago, Illinois;Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania; andNewmarket, Ontario.
3 Musketeers was advertised on television on the 1950s-eraHowdy Doody show, along with a song thatBuffalo Bob Smith encouraged children to sing.[10]
In 1998, the bar's advertisements featured three men dressed as thelegendary Three Musketeers to market the "45% less fat" campaign. The advertising campaign was developed byWill Vinton Studios, whose previous works include theM&M's characters,The Noid andThe California Raisins. The product's original slogan of "Big on Chocolate!" was expanded in these advertisements to "Big on Chocolate, Not on Fat!"[citation needed]
In 2015, Mars, Incorporated debuted a marketing campaign in the form of aYouTube channel. The campaign was developed and directed by theadvertising agency Tribal Worldwide, who explained the project as an effort to establish relevancy and recognition amongGeneration Z.[11] The campaign has encountered mixed reception. Many marketing insiders have described the campaign as an example ofinfluencer marketing, whereby personalities or "influencers" are able to more effectively advertise to an audience that trusts them than an expensive corporate advertising campaign.[11]
A common misconception regarding the Three Musketeers bar and Milky Way bar is that on release the two candies had their respective labels swapped in manufacturing. The explanation given is that the Milky Way bar's three ingredients in the US (chocolate, nougat, and caramel) were originally meant to represent the three musketeers. However the Milky Way bar was released in the US in 1924, and the 3 Musketeers bar was released in the US in 1932, disproving this urban myth.[12][13]
A standard-size 3 Musketeers bar (60 g) has 257 kilocalories (1,080 kilojoules) offood energy, 7 grams of total fat, and 40 grams of sugar, while the mini-size bar (serving size 41 g) has 179 kilocalories (750 kilojoules), 5 grams of total fat, and 27 grams of sugar.[14]
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