Mars backs peanut agri-science to secure supply for top snacks like Snickers and M&M’s sold in vending and micro markets

As one of the top five peanut buyers worldwide, Mars Inc. has a vested interest in securing an adequate and disease-free supply. At the same time, crop losses due to pests and disease mean that up to 30% of peanut production never make it from the pod to the plate, the company notes. To combat the pressures on these essential ingredients for its brands, such as Snickers and M&M's, Mars has invested $10 million in natural crop breeding and plans to invest $5 million more over the next five years.

Mars is formalizing its agri-science support for peanut research with a new initiative, the Mars Protect the Peanut Plan.

Key takeaways for convenience services operators

Product supply stability: Only 1 in 100 peanuts make the cut for Peanut M&M’s. Supporting peanut research helps secure supply for top-selling peanut-based snacks like Snickers and M&M’s — staples in vending machines and micro markets.
Better for the environment, better for business: Drought- and disease-resistant peanut varieties align with growing demand for sustainably sourced products.
Sales depend on ingredient reliability: Mars purchases more than 300 million pounds of peanuts. Ensuring availability supports the products driving consumer demand in convenience services nationwide.

Key among efforts to shore up peanut production has been mapping the peanut genome. During more than a decade of peanut research, Mars co-founded the Peanut Genome Initiative, which helped map more than 2.5 billion base pairs of peanut DNA.

Early efforts are already yielding long-term results: Peanut pioneers at the University of Georgia’s Wild Peanut Lab — a long-time Mars partner — have developed more resilient peanut varieties that can thrive in tough conditions, boosting yields by up to 30%. One such variety, Sempre Verde, is now being grown in Brazil and requires no fungicides. The Mars Protect the Peanut Plan is also working to cultivate other drought and disease-resistant peanut varieties through several research projects.

What they are saying

“We have long believed that Mars can play a unique role as an engine of innovation, which is why we’re thinking in generations and betting big on science to protect the peanut,” said Amanda Davies, chief R&D, procurement and sustainability officer, Mars Snacking. “We know that the perfect peanut won’t be discovered by accident. It will take long-term investment, scientific ingenuity, and the dedication of our incredible partners to keep turning potential into progress — from the greenhouse to the farmer’s field. After all, innovation without implementation is just imagination.”

“The cultivated peanut was a once-in-a-millennium accident of nature, but we can’t afford to wait for chance to strike twice. Creating more resilient peanuts requires transformative science, discipline and partnership,” said Dr. Soraya Bertioli, senior research scientist in the department of plant pathology, Institute of Plant Breeding, Genetics and Genomics, University of Georgia. “Simply put: Our breakthroughs would not be possible without the long-term support of Mars.”