Chocoholic Confusion Explained

[ShadowHM]

I found this today, and it does explain some confusion expressed by my children and their American cottage neighbours after trips to 'the candy store' near the cottage. *

There's a bit of confusion surrounding the M&M/Mars family of chocolate bars — Mars, Snickers, Milky Way and Three Musketeers — because the company markets them differently in different countries.

In the United States, M&M/Mars' home, they shake out like this:

Snickers: Peanut butter nougat, topped with caramel and roasted peanuts and covered with milk chocolate.

Mars (now called "Snickers with Almonds"): Plain nougat, topped with caramel and whole almonds and covered with milk chocolate.

Milky Way: Chocolate malt-flavoured nougat and caramel covered with milk chocolate.

Three Musketeers: Chocolate-flavoured nougat covered with milk chocolate.
While very few people actually notice, the composition of the nougat filling is different for each bar.

Internationally (including Canada), the American Three Musketeers is sold as a Milky Way, the American Milky Way is sold as a Mars bar, and the American Mars bar isn't (wasn't) sold at all. (Confusing, huh?)

Assuming you are from Canada, a Snickers and a Mars bar (American Milky Way) differ in two areas: the Snickers has peanuts, obviously, but it also has a different kind of nougat. Snickers have peanut butter nougat, while Mars bars have chocolate malt-flavoured nougat.


I thought it was confusing when we had a thread a while back about the different words used for 'soft drink' in varying areas - pop, soda, Dr. Pepper :blink: etc. But when the actual product inside the package is not the same thing, it does sow confusion.

Has anyone run into any other examples where products are sold internationally with different names than domestic ones?



* This is actually a general store, but they have a single-mindedness about what they see when they go there.

[Alrin]

I would have written some intelligent reply, but my brain is still busy processing the labyrinth of snack-bar brands and their respective relations.

"ungh head hurt. me go kill rock"

-Al

[Drasca]

Simplest example:

Soft drinks in the United States generally use sugar-substitutes like fructose corn syrup, due to an aritificially inflated minimum price for sugar.

Outside the US, soft drinks use real sugar.

[Guest]

I dont think everying there is exactly correct.

Im pretty sure the current Snickers with Almonds is not the same as the old Mars bar. Some other other notes seem a bit off, but Im less sure about them.

[Lord_Olf]

Hail Shadow,

and I thought I'd smelled it all... all this chocolate and caramel associated with a candy bar... and I hoped never to be reminded of it until... now.

Well, to say my say: I worked in one of the plants that makes these things a summer ago, and boy, don't I ever want to go there again... you could eat all you wanted on the job, the times were OK and the pay also, but... the smell...

Looking back now, the times were good, but the actual minutes... and the smell...

You catch my drift, dont'ya?

Well, it's not really an answer to your question, but I just HAD to respond to this one...

Take care,

Lord_Olf

[Bob]

Vauxhall cars are sold as Opal cars on mainland Europe. You see a recognisable shape occasionally on British roads go, "that's a Vauxhall Astra" and then get up close and realise that it's left-hand drive and an 'Opal Astra' with a foreign number plate. Dunno why, perhaps Vauxhall means something offensive in other European languages.

I never realised you poor Americans have such wierd chocolate bars.
Our Snickers are like your Snickers. Our Mars Bars are like your Milky-Ways and our Milky-Ways are er, hmm, hard to describe. Really fluffy in the middle (and so un-dense that they float) and covered with chocolate.
What's a three musketeers when it's at home?
Basically we're much like Canada, I think (I've not had a Milky-Way in a while, so I can't remember what the filling tastes of, so it could be chocolate flavoured) I can't confirm on the Snickers since I'm intolerant to nuts and can't eat the things.

-Bob

[Occhidiangela]

Vauxhall cars are sold as Opal cars on mainland Europe. You see a recognisable shape occasionally on British roads go, "that's a Vauxhall Astra" and then get up close and realise that it's left-hand drive and an 'Opal Astra' with a foreign number plate. Dunno why, perhaps Vauxhall means something offensive in other European languages.

I never realised you poor Americans have such wierd chocolate bars.
Our Snickers are like your Snickers. Our Mars Bars are like your Milky-Ways and our Milky-Ways are er, hmm, hard to describe. Really fluffy in the middle (and so un-dense that they float) and covered with chocolate.
What's a three musketeers when it's at home?
Basically we're much like Canada, I think (I've not had a Milky-Way in a while, so I can't remember what the filling tastes of, so it could be chocolate flavoured) I can't confirm on the Snickers since I'm intolerant to nuts and can't eat the things.

-Bob
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Opal or Opel?

When I was a teenager, there was an Opel model (that I think was a branch of some Detroit manufacturer, GM perhaps) that was a "European Only."

There was also, a few years back, the Mercury Mystique and Ford Contour/Ford Mondeo(IIRC) that were different Europe vs America.

Sadly, the Ford Kia never made it across the pond, due to the small engine's inability to handle US pollution/smog requirements. Likewise, the Renault Twingo. Having rented them both, I found them most satisfactory.

Occhi

[Scrape]

Another Seinfeld episode comes to mind: 167 "The Dealership."

[Bob]

Opal or Opel?

could be opel, thanks for putting a seed of doubt in my mind... next time *you* want a favour...

When I was a teenager, there was an Opel model (that I think was a branch of some Detroit manufacturer, GM perhaps) that was a "European Only."

There was also, a few years back, the Mercury Mystique and Ford Contour/Ford Mondeo(IIRC) that were different Europe vs America. 

Sadly, the Ford Kia never made it across the pond, due to the small engine's inability to handle US pollution/smog requirements.  Likewise, the Renault Twingo.  Having rented them both, I found them most satisfactory.

Occhi

Ford Kia? Are you getting confused with the ford Ka?
Well, if you are you're lucky that it didn't go over there. Those things are so unbelievably tiny and cramped etc. Blech! (I'm not a 'big cars' person, I just never liked the Ka when I travelled in one - maybe it grows on you).

I've never heard of a twingo, perhaps it has another name again.

-Bob

[LavCat]

Vauxhall cars are sold as Opal cars on mainland Europe. You see a recognisable shape occasionally on British roads go, "that's a Vauxhall Astra" and then get up close and realise that it's left-hand drive and an 'Opal Astra' with a foreign number plate. Dunno why, perhaps Vauxhall means something offensive in other European languages.

I never realised you poor Americans have such wierd chocolate bars.
Our Snickers are like your Snickers. Our Mars Bars are like your Milky-Ways and our Milky-Ways are er, hmm, hard to describe. Really fluffy in the middle (and so un-dense that they float) and covered with chocolate.
What's a three musketeers when it's at home?
Basically we're much like Canada, I think (I've not had a Milky-Way in a while, so I can't remember what the filling tastes of, so it could be chocolate flavoured) I can't confirm on the Snickers since I'm intolerant to nuts and can't eat the things.

-Bob
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Our Cadbury chocolate in the U.S. is made by Hershey, and is not anything like the Cadbury chocolate from England.

I think Mars makes the best U.S. (inter)nationally sold chocolate. There are many fine chocolates in the world, but I prefer Lindt.

[Nystul]

Well, to say my say: I worked in one of the plants that makes these things a summer ago, and boy, don't I ever want to go there again... you could eat all you wanted on the job, the times were OK and the pay also, but... the smell...
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When I was in high school I toured the factory of a local company known as Spangler Candy (maker of "Dum Dums", "Astro-Pops", and other assorted variations on sugar). I remember walking in and thinking "Boy, this smells good." By the end of the tour, I was sick to my stomach, just from the smell of sugar. I can't imagine working in there every day.

[whyBish]

Not just things that are different, but things we hear about through American media and have no clue what they really are, such as:
-bake sale
-slushie
-prom
-drive in movie
-burrito
-wallmart
-seven eleven
-nine eleven (just because we'd call it twelve nine)
-bases (first base etc... I understand the general concept but no clue on the one-to-one mapping)
-democrat/republican (probably more because I have no clue about the difference between a democracy and a republic)
-The constitution, first amendment etc.
-the civil war (or any american history including references to tea and slavery etc :P )
-president,govenor,senator.

[Copadope]

When I was in high school I toured the factory of a local company known as Spangler Candy (maker of "Dum Dums", "Astro-Pops", and other assorted variations on sugar).  I remember walking in and thinking "Boy, this smells good."  By the end of the tour, I was sick to my stomach, just from the smell of sugar.  I can't imagine working in there every day.
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I occassionally drive past the Reeses factory in Hershey, PA, and if the air is moving just right it almost smells like sewage. Well... maybe not raw sewage, but certainly nothing like peanutbutter.

I still love Reeses candy though. :D

[Lord_Olf]

Hail Bob,

could be opel, thanks for putting a seed of doubt in my mind... next time *you* want a favour...

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just to clean out the doubts: It's "Opel", named after the founder of the factory, Adam Opel.


Take care,

Lord_Olf

[Flaming June]

That place certainly does have it's own unique aroma, doesn't it? It's been years since I've been there last, but I'm sure it smells just the same.

[Concillian]

Personally, I stopped eating all of them when they changed 3 Musketeers to a chocolate nougat that has little else but air in it.

yeech. It was way better when it was just a plain nougat.

This was not a recent change. Maybe 15 years ago or something. I was still a teenager, or maybe even younger.

[kandrathe]

For your edification;
bake sale -- people raise money by donating baked goods, which are then bought by the same people who baked them. Only you try not to end up with the same thing you made.

slushie -- very finely ground ice mixed with a flavorful syrup, guaranteed to give you the frozen sinus headache of your life.

prom -- borrowed from Spain, to Mexico, formerly known as Promenade. A human mating ritual where all the young people would dress up and strut around the town. Now, it is associated with the final two years of secondary education known as the Junior and Senior Prom. As far as I can tell, it is still a mating ritual. At that time in my life, I was dating an Iranian girl who ended up returning to her country to join in the revolution.

drive in movie -- A disappearing fad. Back in the 50's some people with a field would put up a permanent 50x100 projection screen, and then install posts with speakers so people could "drive in" and hang the speaker right in their car. Very good for dating.

burrito -- a little burro, or a mexican sounding name for some beans, cheese and meat wrapped up in a soft flour tortilla.

walmart -- The brain child of Sam Walton. If merchandising were a virus, it's name would be Walmart. There are places where Walmart stores are so densly packed that they share the same employees. They attempt to sell everything, including gas, food, clothing, housewares, plants, sporting goods, etc.

seven eleven -- the most successful of the small convenience stores that sell just a little of everything, and pop up on every corner of America and nearly every freeway off ramp. My favorites are the stores named "Kum and Go", or "Pump and Munch". Sorry, they just make me laugh.

nine eleven (just because we'd call it twelve nine) -- Er, ok, yes the date. Sept 11. In Euro its 2001/11/9 rather than 9/11/2001. It seemed my mind just refused to recognize what you were talking about. I must be ready to move on.

bases (first base etc... I understand the general concept but no clue on the one-to-one mapping)-- If we are talking baseball, then the batter runs to 1st, then 2nd, then 3rd, then Home. If we are talking about dating then there some association to how far in the mating ritual one has progressed. A home run is obvious, but 3rd, 2nd, and 1st base seem to vary by locality.

democrat/republican (probably more because I have no clue about the difference between a democracy and a republic) -- In European terms there is no difference between a Democrat and a Republican, they are both freaking useless. A democracy would reflect the political tapestry of the people, so communists, socialists, unionists, etc would all have a voice proportionate to their share of the pie. Our republic is a representational democracy, with caveats that mostly prevent the smaller fragments from having any voice. So for now, we have two parties, Democrats and Republicans, that are pretty centrist in their positions. In our Republic we elect representatives in each state proportionate to our populations, and they cast our votes for us. So more populous states like New York, Texas, Florida, and California have the bulk of the representatives. But, in order for a federal bill to become law it also needs to pass the Senate where every state has two senators.

The constitution, first amendment etc. -- the Constitution is the document that describes how our republic works, and is mostly very droll. The first ten amendments (additions) to the Constitution that were adopted are called the Bill Of Rights which tries to protect the freedoms of the citizens.

the civil war (or any american history including references to tea and slavery etc :P ) -- Ah, well we've all had them in one form or another. Ours was extremely bloody, and there are still places in the South that distiguish between Yankees and Damned Yankees.

president,govenor,senator -- Again, no difference. They are all hogs at the public trough. Politicians are politicians throughout the world.

[whyBish]

So, a bake sale is a "cake stall" here, burrito is some sort of mexican food (and not donkey meat), and I still have no clue about bases, but know enough not to ask further :P

P.S. the nine-eleven => twelve-nine thing is just a reference to a ) American date format being different, b ) timezone differences. The whole event here gets called nine-eleven even though we locally we would've called it twelve-nine. I guess its a case of adopt what you hear most often to avoid communication difficulties.

[ShadowHM]

So, a bake sale is a "cake stall" here, burrito is some sort of mexican food (and not donkey meat), and I still have no clue about bases, but know enough not to ask further :P


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I am guessing here, but 'base' is often used to mean 'Armed Forces Base of Operatons and/or Training'.

Another NZ anecdote from too far back in my past to recollect where I read it had the words 'laundry detergent' mean 'washing powder' - from a hapless ex-pat who had trouble finding the appropriate product in a grocery store. :blink:

[kandrathe]

I am guessing here, but 'base' is often used to mean 'Armed Forces Base of Operatons and/or Training'.

Another NZ anecdote from too far back in my past to recollect where I read it had the words 'laundry detergent' mean 'washing powder' -  from a hapless ex-pat who had trouble finding the appropriate product in a grocery store.  :blink:
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No, no. I think he was talking about getting to 1st, 2nd or 3rd base, as it relates to interpersonal communications.