Latest news with #Freddos
Metro
a day ago
- Business
- Metro
Daughter of Freddo creator reveals he would 'roll in his grave' if he could see
Once a 10-pence treat designed to tickle the tastebuds of children, Cadbury Dairy Milk's frog-shaped Freddo chocolate bar has since become a barometer for the UK's rising cost of living. Now, the daughter of the man who created it has revealed why she won't buy Freddos any longer. Harry Melbourne came up with the idea for the sweet treat almost a century ago, when he was just a teenager. After migrating from England to Australia, he began working at MacPherson Robertson's confectionary factory in Melbourne. There, he convinced his boss to change the shape from a mouse – which might scare children, he argued – to a friendly frog. On the shelves in Australia, the chocolate sold for a penny. Since then, internet sleuths have argued the treat has shrunk in size and rocketed in price in the UK – reportedly reaching up to £1 in some shops. Harry's daughter, Leonie Wadin, has now said that while she once waited for her father to come home with boxes of Freddos, she has not bought one since his death in 2007. The 74-year-old told Sky News: 'Dad was disgusted with how small it is now and how much they charge for it. 'He'd roll over in his grave if he could see it now; he'd be disgusted. It was a penny chocolate.' She added that while the modern price of Freddo would upset her father, he would have been 'so proud' to learn of its popularity in his native Britain – and his great-grandchildren do still purchase the bars. 'They're very proud of their great-grandad, they still buy them, they love them,' Leonie said. 'Carry on through every heritage, that's what I want. '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.' In the UK in 1999, a Freddo cost 10p. Nowadays, Tesco stocks the single bar for 30p, while Asda asks for 35p. Sainsbury's charges a whopping 45p. Factoring in rising wages, shoppers can seemingly get more Freddos for their money, relative to how much they're earning. In 1999, the newly-introduced National Minimum Wage was £3.60 for workers aged 22 and over – meaning, pre-tax, you could buy around 36 bars for an hour's work. As of April 2025, the minimum wage is £12.21 an hour, equating to 40 bars. Additionally, Freddo's size has remained fairly stable in the UK, at around 18g. So, accusations of 'shrink-flation' appear unfounded. In Australia, the bar is lighter – at 12g – perhaps explaining Leonie's concern. However, the cost of a Freddo bar has apparently outstripped inflation. At its UK relaunch in 1994, a Freddo cost 10p. It remained at that price until 2007. More Trending If the price of a Freddo has increased in line with inflation, a bar would sell today for about 21p, according to the Bank of England's inflation calculator. Mondelez International, which owns Cadbury, told Sky News: 'Freddo has endured popularity across generations since originally launching in the UK back in 1973, and continues to be a key part of Cadbury's range today. 'Whilst it's important to stress that as a manufacturer we do not set the retail prices for products sold in shops, our manufacturing and supply chain costs have increased significantly over the past 50 years, and Freddo has become more expensive to make. 'We have absorbed these increased costs wherever possible, however on occasion we have made changes to our list prices or multipack sizes to ensure that we can continue to provide consumers with the Freddo that they love, without compromising on the great taste and quality they expect.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Up to 3,500,000 Brits to receive automatic £40 smart meter compensation payout MORE: Terry's Chocolate is launching a 'top secret flavour' – and fans are all asking the same thing MORE: Cadbury unveils new treat with 'best ever' biscuit — but it'll cost you £7.79 to try it
Daily Record
21-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
Outrage as Cadbury's chocolate bar becomes latest 'shrinkflation' victim
It has been a favourite in the UK since 1970 Customers are livid after Cadbury decided to reduce the number of bars in one of its products whilst maintaining the same price. The beloved confection, which has been a firm favourite since its UK debut in 1970, has seen its popularity wane following this controversial decision, with some loyal fans abandoning the product altogether. Curly Wurly bars, renowned for their chewy caramel toffee coated in Cadbury's signature milk chocolate, are among Britain's most cherished sweets. Typically retailing for £1.40 in a five-bar multipack, Cadbury has now reduced the pack size to four bars while maintaining the identical price point. Whilst the individual bars remain their usual size, customers will now find one bar fewer per packet than they have grown accustomed to. This is not the first time a cherished snack has been downsized in an effort to cut costs; Fudge and Freddos have also been reduced to four bars per pack, while Dairy Milk Little Bars multipacks have been slashed from six to four. The Curly Wurly downsizing has sparked outrage among chocolate lovers, with some vowing to boycott the product completely. One disgruntled customer expressed their frustration on social media, stating: "I'll try to enjoy this four pack as it will be my last." Following the reduction in bars per multipack, Cadbury's parent company, Mondelēz International, defended the move by pointing to rising cocoa and dairy costs. One disgruntled shopper vented their frustration on the Tesco website after noticing a reduction in fudge bars, stating: "Apparently these are no longer meant to go in kids lunchboxes any more because there are 5 days in the school week, not 4." They added: "The price hasn't changed though." Another customer queried: "When will it stop? Not a happy customer! Same goes for fudge bars." A further comment read: "Same price, fewer bars. Not good." In response to the decrease in the number of bars per pack, Cadbury's parent company, Mondelēz International, cited rising cocoa and dairy costs as the reason. The company issued a statement saying: "We understand the economic pressures that consumers continue to face and any changes to our product sizes is a last resort for our business. "However, as a food producer, we are continuing to experience significantly higher input costs across our supply chain, with ingredients such as cocoa and dairy, which are widely used in our products, costing far more than they have done previously. "Meanwhile, other costs like energy and transport, also remain high. This means that our products continue to be much more expensive to make and while we have absorbed these costs where possible, we still face considerable challenges. "As a result of this difficult environment, we have had to make the decision to slightly reduce the weight of our Cadbury Curly Wurly multipacks so that we can continue to provide consumers with the brands they love, without compromising on the great taste and quality they expect." Reducing the size of a product whilst keeping its price the same is a crafty tactic known as Shrinkflation. There is also another method commonly employed by manufacturers called skimpflation, where companies reduce the quality of a product's ingredients whilst leaving its price untouched.
Daily Mirror
21-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mirror
Cadbury classic chocolate bar fans vow to 'never buy again' as they notice fave has shrunk
The popular treat has been downsized- but the price has remained the same, with shoppers vowing to never buy it again Customers are up in arms after Cadbury decided to reduce the number of bars in one of its products without altering the price. The confectionery, a staple since its 1970 debut in the UK, has seen its popularity wane following this controversial decision, leading some loyal fans to abandon the product altogether. Curly Wurly bars, known for their chewy caramel toffee coated in Cadbury's signature milk chocolate, are among Britain's most cherished sweets. Typically retailing at £1.40 for a pack containing five bars, Cadbury has now reduced the pack size to four bars while maintaining the original price point. Despite the individual bars retaining their usual size, consumers will now find one less bar per packet than they're accustomed to. This isn't the first time a beloved treat has been downsized in an effort to cut costs; Fudge and Freddos have also seen reductions to four bars per pack, and Dairy Milk Little Bars packs have shrunk from six to four. When the fudge bars were shrunk one shopper fumed in a scathing review on the Tesco website: 'Apparently these are no longer meant to go in kids lunchboxes any more because there are 5 days in the school week, not 4.' They added: 'The price hasn't changed though .' A second customer asked: 'When will it stop? Not a happy customer! Same goes for fudge bars.' And another said: 'Same price, fewer bars. Not good.' The Curly Wurly reduction has sparked outrage among chocolate lovers, with some vowing never to purchase the product again. One disgruntled customer expressed their discontent on social media, stating: "I'll try to enjoy this four pack as it will be my last." Following the cutback on bar numbers, Cadbury's parent company, Mondelēz International, explained that the move was a response to rising cocoa and dairy costs. After slashing the number of bars in each pack, Cadbury's owner, Mondelēz International, said the decision was taken after increases in cocoa and dairy prices. A statement released by the company said: 'We understand the economic pressures that consumers continue to face and any changes to our product sizes is a last resort for our business. 'However, as a food producer, we are continuing to experience significantly higher input costs across our supply chain, with ingredients such as cocoa and dairy, which are widely used in our products, costing far more than they have done previously. 'Meanwhile, other costs like energy and transport, also remain high. This means that our products continue to be much more expensive to make and while we have absorbed these costs where possible, we still face considerable challenges. 'As a result of this difficult environment, we have had to make the decision to slightly reduce the weight of our Cadbury Curly Wurly multipacks so that we can continue to provide consumers with the brands they love, without compromising on the great taste and quality they expect.' Reducing the size of a product without lowering its cost is a sly tactic known as Shrinkflation. There is also another strategy often adopted by manufacturers known as skimpflation, where companies reduce the quality of a product's ingredients while keeping its price the same.
The Irish Sun
26-06-2025
- Business
- The Irish Sun
Cadbury makes major change to Fudge bars – and customers are fuming
CADBURY has made a major change to Fudge bars and customers are fuming. The chocolate giant has once again reduced the size of its Fudge mulitpack, with customers now getting four bars instead of five. 1 The popular snack has been reduced in size Packs of four are still being sold for £1.40, even though bigger packets were sold for the same price a few month prior Cadbury has faced backlash from customers, especially parents who put the treat in their children's lunch box. Leaving a review on Tesco's website, one angry parent branded it "shrinkflation in action". "Apparently these are no longer meant to go in kids lunchboxes any more because there are 5 days in the school week, not 4." They added: "The price hasn't changed though ." While another upset customer asked: "When will it stop? Not a happy customer! Same goes for fudge bars." And a third shopper said: "Same price, fewer bars. Not good." Cadbury told The Sun changes to product sizes is a "last resort" for the business, blaming "higher input costs" for the change. Most read in Money They said: "This means that our products continue to be much more expensive to make and while we have absorbed these costs where possible, we still face considerable challenges." It is not the first time Cadbury has reduced the size of its chocolate products. We've outdone ourselves with this one' say Cadbury Ireland as they reveal new limited edition bar 'coming soon Cadbury reduced packs of Freddos from five to four and Cadbury Dairy Milk multipacks were cut from nine bars to seven. More recently, the brand slashed the size of it's Dairy Milk Little Bars multipacks by a third. Packs of four are being sold for £1.40, even though packs of six cost the same last month. MORE CADBURY NEWS The confectionery giant has recently rolled out a number of new flavours for customers to enjoy. That includes new Cadbury Dairy Milk Summer Edition bars such as the Iced Latte flavour. The choc is w rapped in cold-activated packaging that transforms in the fridge. A new limited edition Twirl bar has also been rolled out across stores. Read more on the Irish Sun The Twirl White Dipped is coated in white chocolate and customers are saying it reminds them of the discontinued Flake Snow. How to save money on chocolate We all love a bit of chocolate from now and then, but you don't have to break the bank buying your favourite bar. Consumer reporter Sam Walker reveals how to cut costs... Go own brand - if you're not too fussed about flavour and just want to supplant your chocolate cravings, you'll save by going for the supermarket's own brand bars. Shop around - if you've spotted your favourite variety at the supermarket, make sure you check if it's cheaper elsewhere. Websites like let you compare prices on products across all the major chains to see if you're getting the best deal. Look out for yellow stickers - supermarket staff put yellow, and sometimes orange and red, stickers on to products to show they've been reduced. They usually do this if the product is coming to the end of its best-before date or the packaging is slightly damaged. Buy bigger bars - most of the time, but not always, chocolate is cheaper per 100g the larger the bar. So if you've got the appetite, and you were going to buy a hefty amount of chocolate anyway, you might as well go bigger.
Scottish Sun
26-06-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Cadbury makes major change to Fudge bars – and customers are fuming
Plus Cadbury tells us the reason for the change BITTER SWEET Cadbury makes major change to Fudge bars – and customers are fuming Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) CADBURY has made a major change to Fudge bars and customers are fuming. The chocolate giant has once again reduced the size of its Fudge mulitpack, with customers now getting four bars instead of five. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 The popular snack has been reduced in size Packs of four are still being sold for £1.40, even though bigger packets were sold for the same price a few month prior Cadbury has faced backlash from customers, especially parents who put the treat in their children's lunch box. Leaving a review on Tesco's website, one angry parent branded it "shrinkflation in action". "Apparently these are no longer meant to go in kids lunchboxes any more because there are 5 days in the school week, not 4." They added: "The price hasn't changed though ." While another upset customer asked: "When will it stop? Not a happy customer! Same goes for fudge bars." And a third shopper said: "Same price, fewer bars. Not good." Cadbury told The Sun changes to product sizes is a "last resort" for the business, blaming "higher input costs" for the change. They said: "This means that our products continue to be much more expensive to make and while we have absorbed these costs where possible, we still face considerable challenges." It is not the first time Cadbury has reduced the size of its chocolate products. We've outdone ourselves with this one' say Cadbury Ireland as they reveal new limited edition bar 'coming soon Cadbury reduced packs of Freddos from five to four and Cadbury Dairy Milk multipacks were cut from nine bars to seven. More recently, the brand slashed the size of it's Dairy Milk Little Bars multipacks by a third. Packs of four are being sold for £1.40, even though packs of six cost the same last month. MORE CADBURY NEWS The confectionery giant has recently rolled out a number of new flavours for customers to enjoy. That includes new Cadbury Dairy Milk Summer Edition bars such as the Iced Latte flavour. The choc is wrapped in cold-activated packaging that transforms in the fridge. A new limited edition Twirl bar has also been rolled out across stores. The Twirl White Dipped is coated in white chocolate and customers are saying it reminds them of the discontinued Flake Snow.
