Double trouble in Cadbury price hike
Say it ain’t so! Chocolate giant Cadbury is about to increase the price of two favourite Aussie treats by 100 per cent.
Freddo Frogs and Caramello Koalas are the latest victims of Australia’s ongoing cost-of-living crisis, with the manufacturer confirming the cost of each will jump from $1 to $2.
“Our Freddo Frogs and Caramello Koalas have delighted chocolate lovers for generations,” a Cadbury spokesperson wrote in a post on social media on Friday.
“Due to the record global price of cocoa, and increased input costs, we have adjusted the RRP from $1 to $2.”
It’s hard to know what chocolate lovers thought of the 100 per cent jump because the manufacturer had closed its posts on Facebook and Instagram to public comments.
But it did point out it was the first change to the price of Freddo Frogs and Caramello Koalas in more than a decade. The hike also seems to be limited to single sales.
“Sharebags of Freddos and Caramello Koalas are also available and offer great value,” Cadbury noted helpfully.
Cocoa prices have indeed leapt to record levels – up as much as 300 per cent this year alone.
Industry expert Steve Wateridge, who analyses soft commodities for research firm Expana, said there was little relief in sight for chocolate lovers.
“Cocoa prices have been going up and that is likely to continue because manufacturers work with forward price cover and the higher prices over the last six months will only really feed through to the consumer at the end of the year,” he told the BBC this week.
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“Every manufacturer will try to reduce the amount of cocoa they use in products – to some extent they can do that with shrinkflation – although that has been going on for a number of years and has a pretty bad press.”
The Cadbury spokesperson said the manufacturing giant appreciated customer understanding of its issues as “we strive to deliver the high-quality chocolate you love, made with the best local ingredients”.
There was no word about whether further price hikes were likely across the rest of Cadbury’s Australian range.
– TND
