Mars family
An American family whose wealth and public identity are closely associated with ownership of Mars, Incorporated.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
The Mars family is an American family associated with the ownership of Mars, Incorporated, the privately held food and consumer-products company known for confectionery, pet-care, and other food businesses. The family is not itself a consumer product brand; its prominence comes from the ownership structure, corporate history, and inherited wealth connected with Mars, Incorporated. The family’s public profile expanded with the growth of Mars from a confectionery business into a diversified international enterprise. The company’s product portfolio has included confectionery products as well as pet food and related pet-care activities. Because Mars is privately held, the family has generally exercised ownership without the public disclosures required of a listed corporation, making independently verifiable information about individual holdings and family governance more limited than it is for public-company controlling families. The family became particularly prominent in wealth rankings. Fortune identified it as the richest family in the United States in 1988, although later rankings placed the Walton and Koch families ahead of it. In 2016, the Mars family was reported as the third-richest family in the United States. The death of Forrest Mars Sr. in 1999 coincided with Forbes rankings that placed him and his two sons among the richest Americans. In 2010, the three children of Forrest Mars were reported as having equal individual positions in a global billionaire ranking. Following the death of Forrest Mars Jr. in 2016, his wealth passed to his four daughters, three of whom were reported to be working for Mars, Incorporated in 2019. The family has also appeared in discussions of public policy and dynastic wealth. A 2006 report identified the Mars family among billionaire families that had lobbied Congress during the 1990s and afterward on proposals to eliminate the U.S. estate tax. This issue illustrates the broader public-interest questions surrounding privately held family fortunes, inheritance, corporate control, and taxation. As of the available reference material, the Mars family remains associated with Mars, Incorporated and with one of the world’s largest private family fortunes. Exact current wealth, family ownership percentages, governance arrangements, and operating roles should be treated cautiously because estimates vary by methodology and the company is not publicly listed.
History
The Mars family’s history is inseparable from the development and ownership of Mars, Incorporated. The available reference material identifies the family as the owners of the confectionery company and describes the business as having expanded beyond confectionery into pet food and other food-related activities. Since Mars, Incorporated is privately held, ownership has remained concentrated within the family rather than being distributed through a public stock market. The family’s national prominence was first clearly reflected in wealth rankings. Fortune ranked the Mars family as the richest family in the United States in 1988. Later rankings placed the Walton and Koch families ahead of it, and the family was described as the third-richest in the United States in 2016. These rankings were based on estimates and should not be treated as audited measures of a single family balance sheet. Forrest Mars Sr. was a central figure in the family’s later public history. When he died on 1 July 1999, Forbes reported that he and his two sons occupied consecutive positions among the richest Americans, with each estimated at approximately four billion dollars at that time. In March 2010, the three children of Forrest Mars were reported as holding equal positions in a Forbes ranking of the world’s richest people. These reports demonstrate the scale of wealth associated with the company, while also showing how family wealth could be divided among multiple descendants. Forrest Mars Jr. died on 26 July 2016. His four daughters inherited his wealth, and reference material reported that three of them were working for Mars, Incorporated by 2019. This succession event illustrates the continuing role of inheritance in the family’s ownership and its relationship with the operating company. The family has also been discussed in relation to estate taxation. A 2006 report counted the Mars family among 18 billionaire families that had continuously lobbied Congress from the 1990s to eliminate the estate tax. The issue connected the family to a wider debate about intergenerational transfers, private business ownership, and the taxation of large fortunes. By April 2020, published estimates placed the combined private fortune of Mars family members at approximately 126 billion dollars. That figure was an estimate rather than a disclosed corporate valuation or audited family account. The family remains associated with Mars, Incorporated, but the available material does not establish a complete current family roster, precise ownership percentages, or a definitive account of present-day governance.
- 2020
Family fortune estimated at approximately $126 billion
[1]A published estimate placed the combined private fortune of Mars family members at around 126 billion dollars as of April 2020.
- 2016
Forrest Mars Jr. dies
[1]Forrest Mars Jr. died on 26 July 2016, after which his four daughters inherited his wealth.
- 2010
Three Mars heirs reported in a global wealth ranking
[1]The three children of Forrest Mars were reported as sharing the same position in Forbes’ ranking of the world’s richest people.
- 2006
Estate-tax lobbying identified in a report
[1]A report included the Mars family among billionaire families lobbying for elimination of the U.S. estate tax.
- 1999
Death of Forrest Mars Sr.
[1]Forrest Mars Sr. died on 1 July 1999; Forbes subsequently listed him and his two sons among the richest Americans.
- 1988
Fortune names the Mars family the richest U.S. family
[1]The family reached the top of Fortune’s ranking of the richest families in the United States.
Products and positioning
A private business-owning family associated with a global food and pet-care enterprise, rather than a standalone consumer brand.
Brand decisions
2006
Support for estate-tax repeal lobbyingStrategyBackground
A 2006 report identified the Mars family among billionaire families involved in sustained lobbying for elimination of the U.S. estate tax.
Action taken
The family was reported as participating in or supporting lobbying activity directed at Congress on estate-tax policy.
Aftermath
The activity placed the family within broader public debates about inheritance taxation and the political influence of billionaire families; the available material does not establish that the proposed policy was enacted.
Recent events
- 2016
Forrest Mars Jr. dies and his daughters inherit his wealth[1]
Leadership change
Forrest Mars Jr. died on 26 July 2016. His four daughters inherited his wealth, and three were reported as working for Mars, Incorporated by 2019.
- 2016
Mars family reported as the third-richest family in the United States[1]
Other
The family was reported as the third-richest family in the United States, behind the Walton and Koch families.
- 2010
Mars family members reported among the world’s richest people[1]
Other
The three children of Forrest Mars were reported as holding equal positions in a Forbes global wealth ranking.
- 2006
Report links the Mars family to estate-tax lobbying[1]
Regulation
A report identified the Mars family among billionaire families that had continuously lobbied Congress from the 1990s on efforts to eliminate the U.S. estate tax.
- 1999
Forrest Mars Sr. dies as family members appear among the richest Americans[1]
Other
After Forrest Mars Sr. died on 1 July 1999, he and his two sons were reported by Forbes as occupying consecutive positions among the richest Americans.
- 1988
Mars family ranked as the richest family in the United States[1]
Other
Fortune ranked the Mars family as the richest family in the United States at the time.
Sources1 sources
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