Mars Company History: From 1911 Origins to Global Expansion

A Quick Look at the History of Mars

Milky Way Turns a Small Candy Business Into Something Larger

Mars places the beginning of its history in 1911, when Frank C. Mars made and sold butter cream candy from his kitchen in Tacoma. By the early 1920s, his candy business was operating in Minneapolis and was associated with the Mar-O-Bar Company.

The decisive product was Milky Way. Introduced in 1923, it became the breakthrough that gave the young candy business a much larger commercial base. In a long-form history published by The Washington Post, Forrest Mars Sr. later recalled suggesting the idea of turning a chocolate malted drink into a candy bar.

Production expanded to Chicago in 1929. Snickers followed in 1930, adding another product that would become closely identified with Mars.

The early legal lineage was more complicated than one uninterrupted corporate entity. Frank Mars’s U.S. candy business, Forrest Mars Sr.’s later overseas operations, and M&M Ltd. were distinct at important points in the company’s development.

Forrest Mars Sr. Pushes the Business Beyond Candy and the United States

Forrest E. Mars Sr. took the family’s food and confectionery experience in a more international direction. In 1932, he moved to Britain and built operations outside his father’s U.S. business.

That move also widened the business beyond confectionery. In 1935, Forrest acquired Chappel Brothers Ltd., maker of Chappie canned dog food. The acquisition became an early root of what would later grow into Mars Petcare.

After returning to the United States, Forrest established M&M Ltd. in Newark, New Jersey, with R. Bruce Murrie in 1940. M&M candies entered production in 1941 and were sold largely to the U.S. armed forces during World War II. Mars says the product became available to the general public in 1945.

Forrest was also moving into other foods. In 1942, he entered the rice business and opened a commercial rice-parboiling operation in Houston. Mars’s history was already developing along several tracks: confectionery, international expansion, pet food, and other food categories.

This pattern would recur for decades. Mars kept its confectionery business while building capabilities in adjacent categories rather than relying on one product line alone.

International Expansion Becomes a Long-Term Pattern

After World War II, Mars continued expanding manufacturing and commercial operations internationally. The overseas push that Forrest Mars Sr. had begun earlier became a broader operating pattern.

In 1962, Forrest Mars Jr. helped establish and manage a confectionery plant in Veghel, the Netherlands. Three years later, Mars established the Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition in the United Kingdom, reflecting deeper investment in pet nutrition science.

John Mars summarized the company’s international emphasis in a 1992 interview with The Washington Post: “The easiest way out is to grow through global expansion.” Geographic expansion had become a recurring part of the company’s development.

Mars also formalized what it calls the Five Principles. According to the company, the first booklet setting out those principles was distributed globally in 1983. In 1984, Mars moved its corporate office to McLean, Virginia.

Ownership remained with the Mars family, but day-to-day leadership changed. Mars says non-family executives have managed the company since 2001, separating family ownership from operational management.

Petcare Expands From Food Into Veterinary Health

Mars acquired Royal Canin in 2002, deepening its position in specialized pet nutrition. Banfield Pet Hospital joined Mars in 2007, adding a substantial veterinary-services dimension.

The petcare portfolio expanded again in 2014 when Mars agreed to acquire most of Procter & Gamble’s pet-food business, including IAMS, EUKANUBA, and NATURA in major markets, for $2.9 billion in cash. BluePearl became part of Mars Petcare in 2015, extending the business further into specialty and emergency veterinary care.

In 2017, Mars completed its acquisition of VCA. The transaction made veterinary hospitals and clinical services a much larger part of Mars Petcare.

The company kept building around pet health. In June 2023, Mars acquired veterinary diagnostics company Heska and incorporated it into Mars Petcare’s Science & Diagnostics activities.

Over time, Mars Petcare moved well beyond pet food. Nutrition, veterinary hospitals, specialty care, and diagnostics became parts of a broader pet-health business.

Wrigley Changes the Scale of Mars Confectionery

In April 2008, Mars agreed to acquire Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company for $80 per share in a transaction valued at approximately $23 billion. The merger closed in October.

Wrigley became a subsidiary of privately held Mars and its shares stopped public trading. The deal substantially expanded Mars’s confectionery and gum portfolio.

Integration continued later. In 2016, Mars announced that its Chocolate and Wrigley segments would be combined into a single organization, Mars Wrigley, after Mars accelerated its purchase of Berkshire Hathaway’s minority stake in Wrigley.

The transaction became an important example of Mars using a large acquisition to add capabilities and categories that would otherwise have taken much longer to build organically.

Broader Snacking and a Leadership Transition

Mars continued broadening its snacking portfolio in 2020 when it announced the acquisition of KIND North America and combined it with KIND International. Mars said KIND would continue to operate as a distinct business within the group.

A leadership transition followed in 2022. Grant F. Reid retired as CEO, and Poul Weihrauch succeeded him at the end of September.

Private family ownership remained unchanged. In a 2025 interview with Harvard Business Review, Weihrauch described the company’s planning horizon this way: “We’d like to think we think in generations and not just in quarters.” The comment reflects how current management describes the long-term perspective of a family-owned private company.

Cocoa Sourcing Brings Continuing Supply-Chain Scrutiny

Mars has faced scrutiny over cocoa sourcing and child labor in West African supply chains. A 2023 CBS News investigation reported children working on cocoa farms linked through supply chains to major chocolate companies, including Mars.

Mars responded that child labor has no place in its supply chain and said it was investigating the claims while continuing monitoring and remediation efforts.

The issue concerns farms and supply-chain oversight rather than children directly employed by Mars. It remains an important challenge for a confectionery business that depends on cocoa sourced through complex agricultural networks.

Kellanova Becomes the Latest Major Transformation

Mars announced another company-changing acquisition on August 14, 2024, when it agreed to buy Kellanova for $83.50 per share in cash. The transaction represented approximately $35.9 billion in total consideration, including assumed net leverage.

Reuters described it as the largest packaged-food deal of 2024 and noted that the combination would move Mars further into salty snacks and additional markets. The transaction was also larger than Mars’s 2008 Wrigley acquisition.

The deal required regulatory review in multiple jurisdictions before closing. Mars completed the acquisition on December 11, 2025 after receiving final regulatory approvals. Kellanova’s brands and operations became part of the expanded Mars business, principally within Mars Snacking.

By September 3, 2026, the acquisition had already changed Mars’s scale and portfolio, but its long-term outcome was still open. Mars reported more than $65 billion in annual sales after the transaction and more than 170,000 associates globally.

Where Mars Stands Today

Mars, Incorporated remains privately held and owned by the Mars family, with Poul Weihrauch serving as CEO. Its principal businesses are Petcare, Snacking, and Food & Nutrition.

That structure shows how far the company has moved from its candy origins. Confectionery remains central, but Mars now also operates across pet nutrition, veterinary care, diagnostics, food, and broader snacking.

The recurring pattern is expansion into adjacent businesses, supported by international growth and periodic acquisitions that changed the company’s capabilities and scale. Kellanova is the newest chapter in that history, and its longer-term effect had yet to be established by September 2026.

Timeline

This timeline highlights the milestones that most clearly shaped Mars from its early candy business into its current global form.

1911

Mars traces its origin to Frank C. Mars’s candy business in Tacoma, Washington.

1923

Milky Way is introduced and becomes the early company’s breakthrough candy bar.

1929-1930

Production expands to Chicago in 1929. Snickers is introduced in 1930.

1932

Forrest E. Mars Sr. moves to Britain and builds operations outside his father’s U.S. business.

1935

Forrest Mars Sr. acquires Chappel Brothers Ltd., marking an early entry into pet food.

1940-1941

Forrest Mars Sr. and R. Bruce Murrie establish M&M Ltd. in 1940. M&M candies enter production in 1941 and are sold largely to the U.S. armed forces.

1942

Forrest Mars Sr. enters the rice business and opens a commercial rice-parboiling operation in Houston.

1962-1965

Forrest Mars Jr. helps establish and manage a confectionery plant in Veghel, the Netherlands. Mars establishes the Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition in 1965.

1983-1984

Mars says the first Five Principles booklet is distributed globally in 1983. The corporate office moves to McLean, Virginia, in 1984.

2002-2007

Mars acquires Royal Canin in 2002. Banfield Pet Hospital joins Mars in 2007.

2008

Mars announces an approximately $23 billion acquisition of Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company in April. The deal closes in October, making Wrigley a Mars subsidiary.

2014-2017

Mars agrees to acquire most of Procter & Gamble’s pet-food business in 2014. BluePearl joins Mars Petcare in 2015, and Mars completes its VCA acquisition in 2017.

2020

Mars acquires KIND North America and combines it with KIND International.

September 2022

Poul Weihrauch succeeds Grant F. Reid as CEO of Mars, Incorporated.

2023

Mars completes its acquisition of veterinary diagnostics company Heska in June.

August 14, 2024

Mars agrees to acquire Kellanova for approximately $35.9 billion in total consideration.

December 11, 2025

Mars completes its acquisition of Kellanova.

Interviews & Firsthand Resources

The Washington Post: “Planet of the M&M’s”

This 1992 long-form history includes firsthand recollections from Forrest E. Mars Sr., John Mars, and other people close to the company. It is especially useful for understanding the relationship between Frank and Forrest Mars, the Milky Way story, international expansion, and Mars’s corporate culture.

View the resource

Harvard Business Review Interview With CEO Poul Weihrauch

This 2025 IdeaCast interview provides a current executive view of Mars’s family ownership, long-term planning, growth, and modern business portfolio. It is useful for understanding how current management describes the company’s long planning horizon.

View the resource

Mars Museum Curator on 115 Years of Company History

This 2026 conversation with Mars Museum Curator Theresa McCulla offers a first-party look at the company’s 1911 origin and selected historical milestones. It provides readers with Mars’s own perspective on how the company preserves and presents its history.

View the resource

Sources

• Mars, Incorporated: Corporate History, About Mars, Mars Wrigley Organization Announcement, KIND Transaction, Heska Acquisition, CEO Transition, Kellanova Acquisition Announcement, Response to CBS Cocoa Investigation
• The Washington Post: Planet of the M&M’s, Part 1, Planet of the M&M’s, Part 2
• SEC Filing Archive: Wrigley Merger Announcement, Wrigley Merger Completion, P&G Pet Care Transaction, VCA Acquisition Completion
• Reuters: Mars-Kellanova Deal Context
• Kellanova / Mars: Kellanova Acquisition Completion
• CBS News: Cocoa Supply-Chain Investigation
• Harvard Business Review: Interview With CEO Poul Weihrauch