The M&Ms Color Fans Absolutely Begged For

Blue M&M’s are so popular in candy culture that they seem like they’ve always been there. But longtime snack fans know the truth: Blue was once the new kid on the block and its arrival was the result of one of the biggest candy elections of the 1990s. M&M’s had an honest-to-goodness color campaign. And fans voted in large numbers for the shade that would eventually become one of the brand’s most recognizable mascots.

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For decades, plain M&M’s came in a lineup of brown, yellow, red, orange, green, and tan. The tan candy had been around since the late 1940s, quietly doing its job while flashier colors grabbed most of the attention. Then, in early 1995, Mars decided it was time for a change.

Millions of Votes For A Candy

Instead of simply announcing a new color, the company turned the decision over to consumers through what became known as the M&M’s Color Campaign. Fans were invited to choose which hue would replace Tan in the classic assortment. The options were Blue, Pink, Purple, or keeping the existing lineup exactly as it was.

More than 10 million votes poured in during the campaign, which shows that people apparently have very strong feelings about candy aesthetics. When the results were revealed in March 1995, blue dominated the poll, capturing 54% of all votes cast. Purple and pink never really stood a chance.

Of course, not everyone was thrilled about losing tan. Even today, nostalgic snack fans occasionally pop up on Reddit insisting that tan M&M’s somehow tasted better, despite every color containing the same chocolate center. And some fans even go as far as saying the election was rigged.

Fans Picked A Winner That Stuck Around

Plenty of candies disappear after a season or two, but blue M&M’s managed to accomplish the exact opposite. What started as a phone-in fan vote became one of the most successful branding decisions Mars ever made. The color transformed from newcomer to icon, and many younger consumers have never known an M&M world without it, even though it’s quietly disappearing now.

In an era before social media polls and viral campaigns, millions of people dialed a phone number to decide the fate of a chocolate candy. And unlike many fan votes that leave people arguing for years afterward, this one seems to have gotten it right.