Image by Michael Bentley on Flickr.com.
Hershey’s Chocolate is America’s chocolate! I won’t say this means Hershey’s is the best chocolate, everyone has a different opinion on that, but it is a chocolate that has a long history in American culture.
The Hershey Company is the largest chocolate manufacturer in America and it is also one of the oldest chocolate companies in this country. The Hershey’s Company headquarters is located in the town of Hershey, Pennsylvanian. But the town did not always have that name; it was originally called Derry Church, Pennsylvania. The name was changed because of the large presence this chocolate company has in the town. Like the chocolate company itself, the town is named after Milton Hershey, the founder of the Hershey Company.
Milton Hershey founded the Hershey Chocolate Company in 1894 after a successful career in making caramels. Milton Hershey thought caramels were a thing of the past, but chocolate was the future, so he changed careers from making one sweet treat to another. Hershey famously said, “Caramels are just a fad, but chocolate is a permanent thing.” He was certainly right that people’s love for chocolate wasn’t going away.
The Hershey Company makes many different chocolate treats, but some of these treats are more iconic in American culture than others. Here we are going to take a look at three of these. First of all, the simple Hershey’s chocolate bar. This is a thin bar of chocolate wrapped in a brown packaging with silver letters spelling out Hershey’s (like the large as life chocolate bar at the top of the post). This chocolate bar is used to make the classic American camping dessert s’mores. The Hershey’s chocolate bar has also long been used by the U.S. military as part of their food rations for its troops! Chocolate rations in the military serve two purposes: boosting morale and providing a high-energy, pocket-sized food. Another Hershey’s chocolate famous treat is Hershey’s Kisses.
Image by frankieleon on Flickr.com.
These bite-size chocolates have been a favorite American candy since 1907. These chocolates are shaped like a flat-bottomed teardrop or rounded pyramid. They are wrapped in silver foil with a little paper banner sticking out the top and they are the perfect small chocolate to pop in your mouth. The third Hershey’s classic I’m going to highlight is Hershey’s chocolate syrup, which American’s (especially children) love to add to milk or pour over ice cream! If you have never tried any of these Hershey chocolate treats, hopefully you will get the chance someday and see if you like them as much as millions of Americans.
Image by Daniel Oines on Flickr.com.
Now that you know a little more about this classic American chocolate company, why not test your English listening and comprehension skills by watching a few Hershey’s Chocolate commercials. Here is a link to the Hershey’s Company website where you can see a number of different commercials about their chocolate products, including the three classic treats I introduced above. These commercials show how much a part of American culture this chocolate company is.
Let me know which commercial you like best, by leaving a comment below. Also, if you have any questions about what you hear in the commercials, feel free to ask them below.
