“Don’t mess with our chocolate!” Some Brits have a message for the makers of Toblerone Swiss Chocolate. Mondelez International changed the silhouette of some of its triangular bars for United Kingdom customers. The new bars offer about 10% less product for the same price. Chocolate lovers are outraged.
Toblerone originated in 1908 in Switzerland. Theodor Tobler and his cousin Emil Baumann concocted the chocolate-nougat-almond-honey treat. For years, the Tobler company operated independently. But since 1970, various other food businesses have owned the confectioner. Mondelez International acquired Toblerone in 1990.
From the beginning, Toblerone chocolate’s distinctive was its shape. The peaks and valleys are a reminder of the Swiss Alps.
“The shape of the bar may have looked like the Swiss Alps before. Now it’s a bit more Holland,” says British consumer Tony Mathews. In other words, it’s a lot flatter.
Some British consumers likened the new Toblerone shape to a toothless comb. Others called it a crocodile mouth.
Mondelez officials have an explanation for the scrawnier bars. They say the reduction was necessary to cope with higher ingredient prices.
Pressure from U.K. discount store Poundland prompted the British switcheroo. Poundland sells every item for one pound ($1.22)—much like the U.S. store Dollar Tree sells items for a dollar. When Poundland wouldn’t increase prices for two of Toblerone’s bars, Mondelez had to skimp on the chocolate.
The Toblerone tweak shrinks a 170-gram (5.99 ounces) bar to 150 grams (5.29 ounces) says Mondelez spokeswoman Heide Hauer. Shaving that fraction of an ounce allows the price to stay the same.
Toblerone fans elsewhere should watch for smaller bars too. The company is trimming other products globally.
Hauer blames rising ingredient prices, expense calculations, and a weakening Swiss franc for the spike in production costs.
“We carry these costs for as long as possible, but to ensure Toblerone remains on-shelf, is affordable, and retains the triangular shape, we have had to reduce the weight of just two of our bars in the U.K.,” a company Facebook post claims.
Economist Pippa Malmgren studies the practice of “shrinkflation.” She says “whole divisions of major companies” study how to shrink a product but keep the price steady. Malmgren calls shrinkflation “an art form.”
Many sweets fans see Toblerone’s dwindling chocolate bar as nothing but a sneaky trick. But the changes illustrate simple economics: prices rise as costs rise—or the candy bar gets cut.
