| Kippreport.com

Should Mars endorse deep-fried Mars bars?

September 10, 2012 1:04 by Eva Fernandes

The infamous deep-fried Mars bar has sparked many a-discussions in the health care realm, but it also provides for an interesting case study for brand endorsements. Of the various deep-fried fast-food phenomenon, the deep-fried Mars Bars has developed something of a reputation especially in Aberdeenshire, Scotland where the ‘delicacy’ is believed to have originated in nearly twenty years ago at the Carron Fish Bar. Rumor has it the bar had plan to apply for EU protected geographical status-plans which have since been dropped after the chocolate brand politely refused any such endorsement on the grounds of it not fitting “the company’s promotion of healthy living.”

The BBC reports a Mars spokesperson said: “We are really flattered that customers of Carron Fish Bar like our product so much that it has now become a flagship product for the store. No application for a protected geographical indication has been filed to date. Should an application be filed, unfortunately, we wouldn’t be able to support it as deep-frying one of our products would go against our commitment to promoting healthy, active lifestyles.”

The healthy living argument is a bit rich coming from the producer of calorific candy bar like Mars-yet the entire affair does throw an interesting light on the role a brand should play when its products are endorsed and popularized by less than desirable alterations.