Mars Wrigley fined after two workers fell into a tank of chocolate

CNN/Stylemagazine.com Newswire | 2/13/2023, 3:27 p.m.
US regulators have fined Mars Wrigley, the maker of Snickers and Skittles, after two workers fell into a tank of …
Mars Wrigley is fined after two workers fell into a tank of chocolate at its Pennsylvania factory last June. This image shows first responders at the Mars Wrigley plant in Elizabethtown in June after the incident. Mandatory Credit: WGAL

Originally Published: 13 FEB 23 06:29 ET

Updated: 13 FEB 23 12:38 ET

By Anna Cooban, CNN

(CNN) -- US regulators have fined Mars Wrigley, the maker of Snickers and Skittles, after two workers fell into a tank of chocolate at its Pennsylvania factory last June.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined the confectionery and chewing gum maker $14,500 for the incident, which it described as "serious" in a report.

"Employees of an outside employer, I.K. Stoltzfus Service Corp., cleaned tanks, including the Dove chocolate batching 20 micron tank, owned by the onsite/host employer, Mars Wrigley," the report said.

Mars Wrigley failed to provide the contractors with adequate safety training, the document added.

According to Penn Live, a local news site, firefighters rescued the workers by drilling a hole in the bottom of the tank and pulling them out. The chocolate was about waist-high, it reported.

"The safety of our Associates and outside contractors are a top priority for our business," a spokesperson for Mars Wrigley said in a statement. "As always, we appreciate OSHA's collaborative approach to working with us to conduct the after-action review."

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