Milk Chocolate

Name: Milk Chocolate
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

−25

natural flavor−11

milk chocolate−4

chocolate−4

lecithin−3

pgpr−3

Processing

−10

NOVA 4: ultra-processed−10

Packaging

−5

Packaging−5

Adjustments

What it takes to land on the final number

+12

Minimum score+12

Final score0

Contaminants · 4

2 at/over limit

From lab tests of this product’s family

Hershey's plain milk chocolate bars

This product wasn’t tested · results may differ

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

ArsenicNDof 10 ppb

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

Measured in: Milk Chocolate King Size Candy

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 · 10

GoodCautionAvoid

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Healthier swaps

Same shelf, cleaner ingredients

Browse Chocolate

Common questions

Is Hershey's Milk Chocolate healthy?

Hershey's Milk Chocolate 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 Milk Chocolate?

Hershey's Milk Chocolate lists 10 ingredients, starting with Milk Chocolate, Sugar, Milk, Chocolate and Cocoa Butter. Ingredients are listed in descending order by weight, so the first few make up most of what you are eating.

Does Hershey's Milk Chocolate contain seed oils?

No. Nothing in Hershey's Milk Chocolate’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 Milk Chocolate?

Hershey's Milk Chocolate 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 Milk Chocolate compare to other chocolate?

At 0/100 Hershey's Milk Chocolate 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 Milk Chocolate organic?

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

Has Hershey's Milk Chocolate been lab tested?

Not this product itself. It shares a base recipe (Hershey's solid milk chocolate (sugar, milk, chocolate, cocoa butter, milk fat); bars, snack, king size, nuggets, shapes; no nuts, no cookie, no filling) with the other products in its family, Hershey's plain milk chocolate bars, and 10 products in its family have been lab tested. This product is scored with the worst result for each contaminant across those tests. Those results are in the family's Contaminants section above; its own results may differ.

Does Hershey's Milk Chocolate contain heavy metals?

Hershey's Milk Chocolate itself has not been tested for heavy metals, but other products in its family, which share its base recipe, have: 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. Its own results may differ.

Full methodology: how we score products.