Hershey's Quiet Chocolate Swap Backfired

Why did Hershey raise prices, sell less candy and still make 40% more profit? In 2026, the grandson of the man who invented the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup said a new Reese's product was "not edible." Cocoa hit a record of nearly $13,000 a ton. Hershey raised U.S. candy prices by double digits, replaced milk chocolate with cheaper coatings on some Reese's and Hershey's products, and kept prices high even after cocoa crashed. This is the story of how America's most trusted candy company spent its customers' trust, and what it has to win back. Chapters 0:00 "It was not edible" 1:03 Milton Hershey: failure, then an empire 3:57 The cocoa crisis 4:31 Choice 1: raise the price 7:07 Choice 2: use less chocolate 9:55 The cocoa crash 10:39 Choice 3: keep the price high 11:54 Hershey backs down 12:59 What Hershey actually lost Sources Hershey Q4/FY2025 results and Q2 2026 results (SEC 8-K); Hershey 10-Q 2026 (hedging); AP, Feb 19 2026 (Brad Reese letter) and Apr 1 2026 (recipe reversal); Axios, Jul 23 2025 and Oct 30 2025; abc27 and local21news (Sheetz notice, Sept 2025); Trading Economics (cocoa futures); U.S. FDA 21 CFR 163.130 (milk chocolate standard); Hershey Community Archives. This video was produced with the help of AI tools (voice and visuals). Facts are checked against the sources listed above.