The encyclopedia · Product & Design · Product decision · 1989–1994
Mars killed PB Max — a $50M candy bar shelved because the family disliked peanut butter
Mars launched PB Max in 1989 — a cookie bar that hit $50M in sales. The Mars family killed it in 1994 because they disliked peanut butter.
Mars, Incorporated · 1989
What happened
PB Max was a candy bar made by Mars, Incorporated. It consisted of creamy peanut butter over a whole-grain cookie square, enrobed in milk chocolate with crunchy cookie pieces. Launched in 1989, it was one of Mars's few peanut-butter-forward products — the company's portfolio leaned heavily on chocolate, nougat, and caramel (Snickers, Twix, Milky Way), with peanut butter playing a supporting role rather than leading.
The bar was a commercial success. By the early 1990s it was generating approximately $50 million in annual sales. Television ads humorously declared that 'PB' did not stand for 'piggy banks,' 'polka band,' or 'portly ballerina' — it stood for peanut butter. Nothing about the product's market performance suggested it should be discontinued.
In 1994, Mars discontinued PB Max anyway. The reason, according to former Mars executive Alfred Poe as documented in Joël Glenn Brenner's book The Emperors of Chocolate, was straightforward: the Mars family personally disliked peanut butter. Despite the $50 million in annual sales, the family-owned company killed a profitable product because the people who owned it did not enjoy the taste.
Why it happened
- The Mars family, as private owners of the company, exercised veto power based on personal taste — a profitable product was killed because the owners did not like peanut butter
- A family-owned governance structure allowed personal preference to override market data, with no shareholders or board to challenge the decision
- Mars had no institutional mechanism to separate the owners' personal tastes from business strategy — the family's kitchen preferences became corporate policy
The lesson
In a family-owned company, the owner's palate becomes corporate strategy. A private company can kill a $50M product because nobody at the top likes how it tastes.
Aftermath
PB Max has never been reissued. It has become a cult item among candy enthusiasts, frequently cited as one of the most baffling product discontinuations in candy history. The story is documented in The Emperors of Chocolate (2008) by Joël Glenn Brenner, which chronicles the secretive world of Hershey and Mars. The discontinuation remains a textbook case of family-owned corporate governance overriding rational business decisions.
Sources
- Wikipedia — PB Max (launched 1989; $50M in sales; discontinued 1994 because Mars family disliked peanut butter; per exec Alfred Poe and The Emperors of Chocolate)
- New York State Department of Taxation (Tier 1) — Advisory Opinion TSB-A-93(38)S on PB Max and Twix (21 Jun 1993; PB Max was a Mars product on sale by 1993, sold as candy in single and two-bar packs; principal ingredients peanut butter, milk chocolate, oats, flour, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil and sugar)
- The Daily Meal — The Strange Rumor Surrounding The Discontinued PB Max Bar (10 Jul 2023; brought in a whopping $50 million; discontinued between 1992 and 1994; family-dislike story traced to The Emperors of Chocolate; the rumor has never been substantiated by the Mars family or any current employees)
- Mashed — 13 '80s Candies That Belong Back In Stores (launched 1989; $50 million in sales in just its first two years; Mars marketing director Alfred Poe convinced the Mars family to make PB Max even though the family reportedly loathed peanut butter, per The Emperors of Chocolate)
- Snack History — PB Max History: The Discontinued Mars Bar (introduced 1989 by Mars Incorporated; peak sales approximately $50 million; discontinued because the Mars family had a distaste for peanut butter)
- The Takeout — Discontinued Chocolate Candy We'll Probably Never Eat Again (2018; generated over $50 million in sales in a few short years; sold between 1989 and the early 1990s; Brenner's The Emperors of Chocolate attempts to substantiate the family-dislike theory)
- YouTube — PB Max Commercial (original c. 1989–1994 TV ad; the 'PB stands for peanut butter' gag — not piggy banks, not polka band, not portly ballerina)
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