I was watching TV when I happened to see a commercial for limited edition mint crisp M&M’s. It’s apparently a promotion in conjunction with the new Indiana Jones movie. I have to admit, I have a bit of a sweet tooth, and I’m a HUGE fan of mint-flavored candy. The commercial worked on me, and I immediately had a craving. I had to go to the store anyway, so I ended up going to Target, Wal Mart, Exxon, and Bloom (grocery store) which were all in the same shopping center…none of them had it there.

That was about three weeks ago, and every time I’m at a store that would carry M&M’s, I look to see if they have them. No dice. So finally I went over to M&M’s website, and contacted them asking where I could possibly buy these. I get this canned response back:

In response to your email regarding M&M’S MINT CRISP LIMITED EDITION.

Thanks for contacting us about M&M’S MINT CRISP LIMITED EDITION.

Because we are reviewing our marketing strategy, this product is unavailable at this time. Your comments will be shared with our Marketing Staff.

The product cannot be purchased via the Internet nor directly from us.

Have a great day!

Your Friends at Mars Snackfood US

First of all, what kind of response is this? Does Mars have robots working for them?

Second of all, it’s surprising to see such money being wasted. Thousands of dollars spent showing and producing commercials (on top of whatever other marketing was used that I haven’t seen), just to pull the product right at the time when the Indiana Jones movie comes out? While I trust that the marketing dollars backing these billion dollar companies can make better decisions than I can, I’m curious to know the real reasoning (or at least a more detailed explanation) behind why I can’t find these on shelves. Mint crisp M&Ms are still on the website (but then again, I’ve never seen Wildly Cherry either). Next time they should just send me a check for 50% of what they spent on the commercials, and I won’t complain

For now I guess I’ll just have to trust the review of one lucky person that was able to get a pack:

I however, Ms. No Like Mint, really enjoyed them.

It was kinda like, eat one, eat another, how about a few at a time, trust me they are quite addictive.

I hope they will be kept on the market after the movie is done. I think they would make a great after dinner candy or just because.

I guess for now my only option is to buy them on eBay, they seem to be going anywhere from $4-$20/bag. Unless Mars is reading this and wants to send me one

If you’re a mint fan, and tried them, what did you think? If you happen to see them in a store, post a comment and give the details!

Update: A friend of mine has since found a bag of the good stuff at her local Giant grocery store. She luckily read my post and got me one as well. After trying them, I’m not as impressed as I thought I’d be, but they are pretty good. I’d love to have a non crisp version though.