Hershey's Chocolate candy bar

Name: Hershey's Chocolate candy bar
Brand: Hershey's

0Avoid

Breakdown

Ultra-processed · 2 contaminants flagged · 1 ingredient to avoid

Includes lab results from its product family: Hershey's plain milk chocolate bars

100

Lab-measured contaminants

Measured against published safety limits

−72

cadmium−53

lead−19

Ingredients

−22

natural flavor−11

chocolate−4

lecithin (soy)−4

pgpr−3

Processing

−10

NOVA 4: ultra-processed−10

Adjustments

What it takes to land on the final number

Minimum score+4

Final score0

Contaminants · 1

Measured by an independent lab and compared against published safety limits.

ArsenicNDof 10 ppb

Not detectedFDA bottled-water Standard of Quality, 21 CFR 165.110(b) — 0.010 mg/L (= EPA MCL)

Contaminants · 3

2 at/over limit

Includes lab tests of other products in its family

Hershey's plain milk chocolate bars

Worst result per contaminant across the family

In the family’s tests: measured by an independent lab and compared against published safety limits.

Cadmium60 ppbof 5 ppb

Over the limit — 12×FDA bottled-water Standard of Quality, 21 CFR 165.110(b) — 0.005 mg/L

Measured in: Milk Chocolate Candy Bar, 1.55 oz

Lead21 ppbof 5 ppb

Over the limit — 4.2×FDA bottled-water Standard of Quality, 21 CFR 165.110(b) — 0.005 mg/L

Measured in: Milk Chocolate Candy Bar, 1.55 oz

MercuryNDof 2 ppb

Not detectedFDA bottled-water Standard of Quality, 21 CFR 165.110(b) — 0.002 mg/L

Measured in: Milk Chocolate Candy Bar, 1.55 oz

Ingredients · 8

GoodCautionAvoid

,,,,,,,

Healthier swaps

Same shelf, cleaner ingredients

Browse Chocolate

Common questions

Is Hershey's Chocolate candy bar healthy?

Hershey's Chocolate candy bar scores 0/100 on Tallow — our avoid band. That number comes from what is on the label: the ingredients, how processed it is, and what it is packaged in, plus lab results from its product family, Hershey's plain milk chocolate bars. It is not a verdict on your diet — Tallow does not weigh calories, portion size or how often you eat it, so a high score means the ingredients are clean, not that the food is unlimited.

What is in Hershey's Chocolate candy bar?

Hershey's Chocolate candy bar lists 8 ingredients, starting with Sugar, Milk, Chocolate, Cocoa Butter and Milk Fat. Ingredients are listed in descending order by weight, so the first few make up most of what you are eating.

Does Hershey's Chocolate candy bar contain seed oils?

No. Nothing in Hershey's Chocolate candy bar’s ingredient list matches a seed oil — canola, soybean, corn, cottonseed, grapeseed, sunflower, safflower, rice bran or peanut oil, or an unspecified "vegetable oil".

How processed is Hershey's Chocolate candy bar?

Hershey's Chocolate candy bar is NOVA group 4: ultra-processed. That is the top of the scale and the classification the score penalises most heavily.

How does Hershey's Chocolate candy bar compare to other chocolate?

At 0/100 Hershey's Chocolate candy bar scores worse than most chocolate we have scored. A higher-scoring option in chocolate is Hu Organic Hazelnut Butter + Hazelnut Crunch Milk Chocolate at 100/100.

Is Hershey's Chocolate candy bar organic?

Hershey's Chocolate candy bar is not certified organic in our data.

Has Hershey's Chocolate candy bar been lab tested?

Yes. 1 substance in Hershey's Chocolate candy bar has a laboratory result on file — see the Contaminants section above for each reading and the limit it was measured against. Other products in its family (Hershey's plain milk chocolate bars), which share its base recipe, were lab tested too. This product is scored with the worst result for each contaminant across those tests. Their results are in the family's Contaminants section above.

Does Hershey's Chocolate candy bar contain heavy metals?

No. A lab tested Hershey's Chocolate candy bar for arsenic and found none above its detection limit. Other products in its family, which share its base recipe, were tested too: a lab detected cadmium at 60 ppb against a 5 ppb limit in Milk Chocolate Candy Bar, 1.55 oz and lead at 21 ppb against a 5 ppb limit in Milk Chocolate Candy Bar, 1.55 oz. This product is scored with the worst result for each contaminant across those tests.

Full methodology: how we score products.