"Nobody asked for this": Vegan Reese's Peanut Butter Cups come under scrutiny over plant-based ingredients 

March started oddly sweet as the Hershey company introduced new plant-based additions to Reese's brand of confectioneries. The beloved chocolatier is adding two new dairy-free vegan confectioneries to its exhaustive range of globally popular chocolates.

The new confectioneries provide chocolate lovers nationwide with a vegan alternative - Hershey's Plant-Based Extra Creamy with Almonds and Sea Salt and Reese's Plant-Based Peanut Butter Cups. The two new 'Plant Based Treats,' as Hershey calls them, will hit the stores this spring.

While the vegan Peanut Butter Cups will start appearing on store shelves in March, Hershey's Plant-Based Extra Creamy with Almonds and Sea Salt will come to stores in April.

The new 'Plant Based' chocolates from the Hershey company (Image via The Hershey Company)

While Hershey's company is hyped up for the new plant-based confectionaries, fans aren't too pleased with them. The new vegan chocolate has already become the target of public scrutiny as fans question the need to introduce the said 'Plant Based' chocolates. Joining other social media users in showing their displeasure, a Twitter user said that nobody asked for the new chocolates.

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Hershey's faces public displeasure over new 'Plant Based' Reese's confectioneries

As Hershey's gives vegan treatment to its Reese's brand peanut butter cups and Hershey's chocolates, fans can enjoy their favorite milk chocolates without the milk.

Although the new milk chocolate still has milk as the base ingredient, the brand will use oat milk instead of dairy-based milk. The move comes following a rise in the demand for plant-based and vegan options in the United States food industry.

With the introduction of Hershey's Plant-Based Extra Creamy with Almonds and Sea Salt, and Reese's Plant-Based Peanut Butter Cups, the Hershey's Company will join major brands like Kitkat, Cadbury, Lindt, and others that have long been offering vegan chocolates.

While the new vegan offerings could be good news for people who can't consume dairy-based chocolates, the internet does not seem very pleased with the 'Plant Based' label.

The new vegan chocolates will be available in major stores across the country (Image via The Hershey Company)

The internet is swarming with comments and tweets from users who seem quite displeased with the 'Plant Based' label on the new chocolates. While some users feel that the brand is just using it as a ploy to wring out more cash from customers, others seem confused about the 'Plant Based' label.

One Twitter user pointed out how the 'Plant Based' label was pretty confusing, to begin with, and how it could have been better if the brand used a 'dairy-free' label instead.

Almost all the ingredients in the new 'Plant Based' Reese's and Hershey's chocolates will remain the same, except for the use of oat milk in place of milk derived from dairy products.

While the new chocolates get the vegan treatment, they don't seem to have gotten any healthier, as the calories seem almost similar to the numbers on regular Hershey's and Reese's confectioneries.

Customers should also note that the new vegan chocolates will be available at higher prices than their regular counterparts. The brand said that the retailers can set the prices for the new chocolates.