Mars Wrigley fined after workers fall into chocolate vat

A Mars Wrigley factory in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania has been fined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) after two workers fell into a chocolate vat and had to be rescued.

The fine received by the chocolate factory amounts to $14,502.

The BBC has also said that the incident took place in June 2022 when a hole was cut in the base of a “partly-full” batching-tank in order to get the workers out. The BBC has reported that the workers were contractors who did not work full time at the factory.

Reports from The Guardian claim that the two workers did not have any injuries as a result of falling into the vat. However, it noted local reports said that first responders had to help cut the hole in the tank as the two workers were “unable to get themselves out”.

With the incident being labelled as “serious” in the regulators report, the BBC has said over two dozen rescuers responded to the incident and it claims that one of the workers was taken to hospital by helicopter.

The batching-tank was reportedly used to mix ingredients for Mars Wrigley’s Dove Chocolate (a brand that is sold in the US but is labelled as ‘Galaxy’ in the UK).

When approached for a comment, a company spokesperson from Mars Wrigley told New Food: “The safety of our Associates and outside contractors are a top priority for our business. As always, we appreciate OSHA’s collaborative approach to working with us to conduct the after-action review.”