What The Mondelez Bid Means To A Hershey Native | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Student Life

What The Mondelez Bid Means To A Hershey Native

23
What The Mondelez Bid Means To A Hershey Native
Business Insider

Earlier this week, news of snack giant Mondelez’s 23 billion dollar takeover bid for Hershey’s shot through the town of Hershey, PA faster than you could say chocolate. While the offer was quickly rejected, its mere existence and the potential for future offers like it left many residents of Hershey with a taste in their mouths that was anything but sweet.

Though Mondelez conceded to retain the name Hershey’s through the merger and to locate its global headquarters in Hershey, there was still something unsettling about the deal. The deal itself called into question what exactly the chocolate means not just to the town of Hershey itself, but to its residents as well.

Alongside our education of math and science in Hershey, we were also given a sort of “chocolate education” which when we were younger may have held just as much importance to us. I’m sure we can all remember at least some of the stories of Milton Hershey and his caramel company, his wife Kitty, or how he was supposed to be on the Titanic (if you don’t remember any of that then a quick trip on the trolley should help). Milton Hershey seemed to us a sort of super-hero and we relished the idea that we lived in a town bearing the name of such a benevolent and fantastical man.

Growing up being taught to love Hershey and everything that the name stood for, this proposed merger seemed like a personal attack and if carried through, made me feel as though Hershey would never be the same. Initial reactions to the news were often “why?” and while I do not pretend to understand the inner workings of the business world or if a merger should logistically be in Hershey’s future, I cannot help but echo the same question: why?

One of the most unsettling things about the Mondolez deal is that Hershey’s would be the company being acquired. In my mind I always believed that Hershey’s- my beloved Hershey’s- was a company that acquires others, rather than the other way around. It felt as though through this proposed deal we would be losing some of the essence of what makes us Hershey, something that we cannot afford.

This same feeling resonated through the town two years ago when our beloved chocolate factory was tragically demolished. I can’t help but feel a little sad every time I drive by there and see what once stood as a glorious example of the might of our town reduced to a pile of dust, leaving us only with our memories of what once was. I do not want to be left with merely memories though which is why the initial announcement of Mondolez’s offer gave the knee jerk reaction of uneasiness.

Though we may sometimes deride Hershey by calling it “the chocolate bubble,” the truth is that we love to say that we came from Hershey because the chocolate is part of who we are. This chocolate town is the one that molded us, the one that shaped us, the one that made all other street lights seem boring, and the one that I am proud to call home. It really is the sweetest place on earth.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
ross geller
YouTube

As college students, we are all familiar with the horror show that is course registration week. Whether you are an incoming freshman or selecting classes for your last semester, I am certain that you can relate to how traumatic this can be.

1. When course schedules are released and you have a conflict between two required classes.

Bonus points if it is more than two.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

12 Things I Learned my Freshmen Year of College

When your capability of "adulting" is put to the test

2858
friends

Whether you're commuting or dorming, your first year of college is a huge adjustment. The transition from living with parents to being on my own was an experience I couldn't have even imagined- both a good and a bad thing. Here's a personal archive of a few of the things I learned after going away for the first time.

Keep Reading...Show less
Featured

Economic Benefits of Higher Wages

Nobody deserves to be living in poverty.

301965
Illistrated image of people crowded with banners to support a cause
StableDiffusion

Raising the minimum wage to a livable wage would not only benefit workers and their families, it would also have positive impacts on the economy and society. Studies have shown that by increasing the minimum wage, poverty and inequality can be reduced by enabling workers to meet their basic needs and reducing income disparities.

I come from a low-income family. A family, like many others in the United States, which has lived paycheck to paycheck. My family and other families in my community have been trying to make ends meet by living on the minimum wage. We are proof that it doesn't work.

Keep Reading...Show less
blank paper
Allena Tapia

As an English Major in college, I have a lot of writing and especially creative writing pieces that I work on throughout the semester and sometimes, I'll find it hard to get the motivation to type a few pages and the thought process that goes behind it. These are eleven thoughts that I have as a writer while writing my stories.

Keep Reading...Show less
April Ludgate

Every college student knows and understands the struggle of forcing themselves to continue to care about school. Between the piles of homework, the hours of studying and the painfully long lectures, the desire to dropout is something that is constantly weighing on each and every one of us, but the glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel helps to keep us motivated. While we are somehow managing to stay enrolled and (semi) alert, that does not mean that our inner-demons aren't telling us otherwise, and who is better to explain inner-demons than the beloved April Ludgate herself? Because of her dark-spirit and lack of filter, April has successfully been able to describe the emotional roller-coaster that is college on at least 13 different occasions and here they are.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments