# Jacqueline Mars **Jacqueline Badger Mars** (born October 10, 1939) is the daughter of [[Forrest Mars Sr.]] and granddaughter of [[Frank Mars]]. She owns roughly one-third of [[Mars Inc.]] and is among the richest women in the world. For the KB she is one of the two surviving second-generation principals of the [[Mars Family]]: a holder of inherited private-company wealth on the largest scale, who stays mostly out of view. The dynasty story, its governance model and its political profile live on the family page. ## Ownership and wealth She and her brother [[John Mars]] each hold an estimated one-third of Mars Inc., inherited when their father died in 1999. The four daughters of their late brother [[Forrest Mars Jr.]] hold the remaining third (Forbes). Estimates of her fortune depend on the date and the valuation method: | Estimate | Figure | Rank | |---|---|---| | Forbes 400 (September 2026) | $50.3 billion | No. 21 in the US, tied with John Mars | | Forbes World's Billionaires (March 2026) | $49.1 billion | No. 38 in the world, tied with John Mars (per Northern Virginia Magazine) | | Forbes (April 2024) | $38.5 billion | No. 19 in the US | ## Career She graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 1961 with a degree in anthropology. She joined Mars in 1982 as president of the food product group and later concentrated on the company's philanthropic arm, the Mars Foundation. She retired from management in 2001 and stayed on the board until 2016 (Forbes). Her son [[Stephen Badger II]] has served as board chair in the family's rotating model. ## The Kellanova deal The family's biggest move of the decade happened after she left the board, but it reshaped the asset she owns. | Date | Step | |---|---| | 2024-08 | Mars agrees to buy Kellanova (Pringles, Cheez-It, Pop-Tarts) for about $36 billion, or $35.9 billion including debt (Forbes) | | 2025-06 | European Commission opens an in-depth Phase II review over pricing and retailer-leverage concerns | | 2025-12-08/09 | Commission clears the deal unconditionally | | 2025-12-11 | Acquisition closes, financed with $26 billion of senior notes, $1 billion of private notes, $4 billion of term loans and cash | ## Philanthropy, farm and public record - In March 2026 she gave $10 million to Bryn Mawr, where she is a trustee emerita, for undergraduate scholarships. - She is chair emerita of the Washington National Opera and was a trustee of the US Equestrian Team. She runs Stonehall Farm in The Plains, Virginia, an organic farm that also breeds and trains horses. - On October 4, 2013, she was the driver in a crash near Aldie, Virginia, that killed 86-year-old Irene Ellisor. She pleaded guilty to reckless driving on December 5, 2013, and was fined $2,500, with a six-month license suspension. **Political giving:** this page makes no claim about her personal federal contributions. Her FEC and OpenSecrets records have not been reviewed here. For the family's documented political footprint (no corporate PAC, estate-tax lobbying, ALEC membership until 2012), see [[Mars Family]]. ## See Also - [[Mars Family]] · [[Mars Inc.]] · [[John Mars]] · [[Forrest Mars Sr.]] · [[Forrest Mars Jr.]] - [[Stephen Badger II]] · [[Victoria Mars]] · [[Frank Mars]] · [[Estate Tax]]