Here’s a deep one for you. How do they get the Ms on M&Ms? My wife says they have a machine that stamps them one at a time, but I say that’s too time-consuming. Can you give us the straight dope? –G. Glenn Mahoney, Atlanta
My question is, what happens at 8:06? –Barry M., Chicago
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You’re onto something here, boys, although with luck and a little baking soda maybe you’ll still pass the urine test. M&Ms are definitely mysterious. (My personal question: do they have M&M proofreaders?) I first tried to find out how they get the Ms on M&Ms years ago, but my fact-finding mission was stymied by the company’s total refusal to cooperate. The culprit was M&M/Mars’s parent company, Mars, Inc., whose paranoia is the stuff of legend. Mars’s response to the most innocuous inquiry, even from schoolchildren, is that the information is “confidential.” The $6 billion firm is privately held, publishes no annual report, and refuses all interview requests from the press. Interestingly, the main office is located in McLean, Virginia, a short distance from the headquarters of the CIA. I’m not saying there’s a connection, but you have to wonder.
Art accompanying story in printed newspaper (not available in this archive): illustration/Slug Signorino.
