Mars confectionery no longer suitable for vegetarians.

[Fay]

just wait half a year before buying new onces?

[jabberwock]

I shouldn't think it would take that long. They switched to animal rennet on 1st May and all products with a use-by date after October were then unsuitable for vegetarians but I couldn't see any older stock in the shops so the turnover must be pretty quick. They say they will keep their website up to date with more details of the vegetarian products:
Masterfoods Consumer Care:Prototype page

However, if you look at their FAQ they say that Twix, Bounty and Celebrations will continue to not be suitable for vegetarians:
Masterfoods Consumer Care: Vegetarian FAQ's

[ellig123]

This is a statement from Masterfoods, it was in the paper today but I've copied this from their website:

"Statement on Current Vegetarian Status At Mars UK we recently changed the source of some of the whey which is used in some of our chocolate products. We have received lots of feedback that this decision has made it difficult for some of you, especially those of you who are vegetarians, to continue to enjoy our products.
We made a mistake. We apologise.
The consumer is our boss. Therefore we listen to you and your feedback.
As a company we value openness, honesty and diversity and we believe that anybody should be able to choose freely from our range of chocolate brands.
But being sorry isn’t enough. Therefore we commit to you today, that we at Mars UK will ensure that a selection of your favourite brands – Mars bars, Snickers bars, Galaxy and Maltesers, will be suitable for vegetarians in the near future. To this effect we are starting to change our manufacturing process today.
We will keep you informed of our progress against this commitment through regular updates on this website.
Please accept our apology and keep talking to us..."

[gpigluver14]

YESSS! I haven't been on for a while and checked this thread and found out they have stopped using it. Yay! I still can't eat Twix though....

[cavy-cool-crazy]

jabberwock already directed you to this site, but this is the link to the Best Before dates on the new vegetarian products. It states that the products listed will be available in the next 2-3 weeks.

Masterfoods Consumer Care: Statement on Current Vegetarian Status

I'm glad they listened and corrected their 'mistake' so quickly.

[ellig123]

That's very useful, I've passed it on to my vegetarian friends too

[JarBax]

Nothing all that new - but copy of e-mail reply I received today - nae doot everyone got/will get the same!

Dear Sir/Madam

Thank you for taking the time to contact us in connection with the change of ingredients in our chocolate confectionery and ice cream range.
Please note that after recently changing the source of some of the whey that is used in some of our chocolate products we have received lots of feedback that this decision has made it difficult for some of you, especially those of you who are vegetarians, to continue to enjoy our products. We realise that we made a mistake and we apologise. We have committed that we at Mars UK will ensure that a selection of favourite brands including Mars bars, Snickers bars, Galaxy and Maltesers will be suitable for vegetarians in the near future.
Meanwhile we are currently experiencing unusually high volumes of contacts from our consumers and therefore we hope that you understand that, rather than answer your question individually, we are attaching a list of questions and answers we believe would be usefu l and help answer your enquiry.
Alternatively you can visit our web site (Masterfoods Consumer Care) for this, and other useful information.
Once again thank you for taking the time to contact us. Please do get back in touch, at the dedicated email address below, if your specific query has not been answered and we will do our best to get a speedy response to you.
Yours faithfully
On Behalf of Fiona Dawson
Mars UK
fionadawson@masterfoods.co.uk

Q1.What are you announcing?
A1.We have recently changed the source of some of the whey which is used in our chocolate products made in the UK from a vegetarian friendly variety to one which contains traces of traditional rennet from animal sources. We have received lots of feedback from consumers and reversed this decision.
Q2.Are you reverting to vegetarian recipes for all of those products that were subject to the ingredient change?
A2.Yes, this announcement means that favourite produc ts - Mars bars, Snickers bars, Galaxy, and Maltesers will once again be suitable for vegetarians.
Q3.You make lots of other brands - what about the suitability of them?
A3.Other products will also be suitable for vegetarians including Minstrels, Revels, and Ripple. However, Twix, Bounty and Celebrations will continue not to be suitable for vegetarians.
Q4.I'm a vegetarian - which products can I eat / should I avoid?
A4.Currently we cannot guarantee that our products contain vegetarian rennet. However, we are starting to change our manufacturing process with immediate effect. We want to get our vegetarian products on the shelves as soon as possible. During this process of changing the recipes we will provide updates on this consumer care website, on a regular basis. If you are not sure about the suitability of our products please call us on 0845 0450042.
Q5.Why did you decide to change the ingredients in the first place?
A5.We made the cha nge to broaden our supply base in order to ensure we could continue to provide our consumers with products of consistent quality in the future.
Q6.Will you now consult with consumers on any future changes to products? A6.Yes. This change was a mistake and we are sorry that we may have prevented consumers from enjoying the products they've always enjoyed.

Have to say though that have been pondering the virtues in not eating rennet from calves, whilst still consuming the milk taken from their long-suffering mothers...

[Fay]

I had the exact same e-mail!

[thalestral]

I noticed today in Tesco that all Mars chocolate products were on special offer with a note saying the offer would end on a certain day next week. Coincidence? I think not! Me and the bloke had a good laugh at their expense anyway!

[Sabriel]

I can't believe Twix bars aren't veg. I like those better then Mars bars. I guess I'll have to stick with Maltesers and Cadbury's stuff.

[ellig123]

I got a reply to my letter today- nothing we didn't know already, just a standard letter and a load of sheets of the FAQs page about it, but at least they acknowledged my letter anyway.

[thalestral]

I don't understand why they're keeping Twix and Bounty non-vegetarian - where is the sense in that? Bah.

[ellig123]

I'd have thought it was something to do with the ingredients they use in the biscuit part of the Twix, were they vegetarian to start with? (I don't know, I never liked them anyway, )