Freddo creator is ‘rolling in his grave' at new price, says daughter

News.com.au

3 days ago

The creator of the iconic Freddo frog chocolate bar would be 'rolling in his grave' if he could see the current price of the small Cadbury treat today, according to his daughter.
A single 35g bar retails for $2 in Australian retailers such as Woolworths and Coles, after suffering a 100 per cent price hike in August last year that Cadbury said was due to the 'record global price of cocoa and increased input costs'.
When the bar was first introduced by the MacRobertson's Chocolate Factory in Fitzroy in 1930, it cost just a penny to buy.
And Leonie Wadin, whose father Harry Melbourne first crafted the frog-shaped bar, says its affordable price point was an integral part of the chocolate treat's integrity.
'Dad was disgusted with how small it is now and how much they charge for it,' the 74-year-old told Sky News.
'He'd roll over in his grave if he could see it now; he'd be disgusted. It was a penny chocolate.
'Since Dad died, I haven't bought a Freddo.'
The popular treat-sized chocolate has become the poster child for 'shrinkflation' in recent years, with many consumers airing frustration as the size of their favourite snack items reduce in size, while the price either remains stagnant or goes up.
Chocolate has been hit particularly hard by rising costs and inflation. The price of cocoa has more than doubled in the past year as poor weather conditions in West Africa, the largest cocoa-producing region in the world responsible for 70 per cent of supply, devastated crops.
This has forced major manufacturers such as Cadbury owner Mondelez to pass on some of those costs to customers.
But those who enjoyed the affordability that a Freddo once gave have been unimpressed by the seemingly massive jump in price, which last year went from $1 to $2, and some have been quick to agree with Ms Wadin's remarks.
'I got these as a child in Australia for 5c now they are $2 each,' one said on TikTok.
'Stop I can't believe he's $2 now! That's a joke!' agreed another.
As one stated: 'The price of a Freddo these days is absolutely shocking.'
Harry Melbourne was just 14, according to his daughter, when he was challenged by his boss at the MacRobertson's Chocolate Factory to create a new product to celebrate the company's 50th year.
Sir Macpherson Robertson, his boss, was considering a mouse, but Mr Melbourne interjected, telling him the treat wouldn't sell 'because women and children are afraid of mice'.
Instead, he suggested frogs – because local children 'delighted' at catching tadpoles – which later grow into the green creatures – in nearby ponds.
Three days later, and the Penny Chocolate Frogs were born. These were later renamed 'Freddo' after Mr Melbourne's friend Fred, who worked in the packing department.
By the time Cadbury bought MacRobertson's in 1967, Freddo was already a household name, and more than 90 million of the chocolate frogs are sold each year.
As much as the modern Freddo price would upset her father, Ms Wadin said he 'never knew' its appeal had reached his native UK, adding he would have been 'so proud' of the chocolate bar's success.
Mr Melbourne died on January 24, 2007, in Epping, Melbourne, at the age of 94.
Ms Wadin, who has five children, 10 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, has kept his memory alive by sharing his story.
'They're very proud of their great-granddad, they still buy them [Freddo bars], they love them,' she told Sky News.
'The Freddo has to be passed on, Freddo is never going to die.
'It will always be there … I just want it all passed down, so that the frog is always in our lives.'