A family fight over America’s favorite candy is turning bitter.
Brad Reese, 70, the grandson of H. B. Reese — the man who invented Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups — is publicly accusing The Hershey Company of quietly downgrading ingredients in some of its best-selling treats.
Reese, who lives in West Palm Beach, claims the company has swapped out milk chocolate for compound coatings made with vegetable oils in certain products. He also alleges that real peanut butter has been replaced in some items with “peanut butter creme.”
“I can’t just let it go,” Reese said. “They’re lowering the quality of ingredients, charging the same price and probably giving you a smaller product size. I’m really embarrassed as a member of the Reese family.”
He specifically pointed to products such as White Chocolate Cups, Fast Break, Take5, Nutrageous and Sticks, alleging that some now use coatings containing enough vegetable oil that they no longer qualify as real chocolate under federal labeling standards. Food regulations enforced by the FDA require a certain percentage of cocoa butter — not vegetable oil — for a product to be labeled as chocolate.
Hershey pushed back, saying its original Peanut Butter Cups are still made with milk chocolate and peanut butter. The company acknowledged it has made “recipe adjustments” in newer products to allow for different shapes, sizes and innovations that fans request.
Reese wasn’t buying it.
“What consumer do you know has said, ‘Hey, I don’t want milk chocolate in my Reese’s anymore — I prefer compound coating?’” he said.
The drama didn’t stop at the corporate level. After Reese’s LinkedIn posts criticizing the company went viral, his cousin Becky Hilgers — whose daughter works for Hershey — reportedly sent him a heated text urging him to stop.
“You have created a nightmare for our family and the company,” the message read. “You might be in legal trouble because your unfounded negative comments have affected the price of the stock. It’s embarrassing to the entire Reese clan. Please stop!”
Hershey stock dipped about 0.9% Tuesday before rebounding the next day.
Hilgers later described her cousin as an “attention-getter,” claiming he often wears Reese’s-branded clothing to spark conversation and suggesting he is bitter over family finances. Reese shot back that she’s more concerned about the company’s stock price — and her daughter facing backlash at work — than the integrity of the candy itself.
Reese says his breaking point came when he bought a Valentine’s Day bag of peanut butter-and-chocolate hearts.
“I had to throw it away. It wasn’t edible,” he said. “I’ve never had to throw a Reese’s product in the garbage. That was my wake-up call.”
He also pointed to labeling differences such as “peanut butter creme” instead of “peanut butter” and “white creme” instead of “white chocolate,” arguing that consumers may not realize what they are actually buying.
Hilgers said she isn’t convinced by his claims and noted that her cousin likely hasn’t stepped inside a plant in decades. She added that he has previously been told by Hershey’s legal department to “cease and desist with this nonsense.”
Now what started as a social media complaint has turned into a full-blown family feud — with America’s most iconic peanut butter cup caught in the middle.