Hershey's banned British-made Cadbury; people livid
Pennsylvania-based chocolate manufacturer Hershey’s has blocked imports of British-made Cadbury chocolate from entering the U.S.
Pennsylvania-based chocolate manufacturer Hershey's has blocked imports of British-made Cadbury chocolate from entering the U.S.
Hershey's not-so-smooth move of banning British-made Cadbury chocolate products from the U.S. comes after a settlement between the Hershey Company and Let's Buy British Imports over Hershey's claim that the imports infringed on trademarks and trade dress licensing. British Ki-Kat bars, Yorkie chocolate bars, Maltesers, and Toffee Crisps have also been banned.
And while a Hershey's spokesperson told The New York Times that they can manufacture Cadbury chocolate here in the U.S., there are noticeable differences between American Cadbury recipes and British Cadbury recipes. Namely, "Chocolate in Britain has a higher fat content," writes New York Times author Tatiana Schlossberg. The first ingredient in British Cadbury's milk chocolate is milk. The first ingredient in American Cadbury milk chocolate is sugar. U.S. Cadbury chocolate also has preservatives while the British recipe does not.
Needless to say, people are not happy about Hershey's perceived chocolate dictatorship. They've responded via social media using the hashtag #BoycottHershey.
One Twitter user calls the company's tactic "disgusting" and others believe Hershey's chocolate has a subpar taste versus the British-made Cadbury chocolate.
Frantic fans are stocking up on enough British-made Cadbury to last them until the next Snowpocalypse.
There is intense solidarity among the right-to-choose-chocolate community. #Unitedwestand.
And some chocolate connoisseurs even question whether or not Hershey's even manufactures "chocolate." Hmmmm?
A MoveOn.org petition made to "Protest Hershey's Lawsuit Against British Chocolate Importers" has more than 15,000 signatures and is steps away from being delivered to Hershey's CEO John P. Bilbrey's doorstep.
Cadbury beat Hershey's chocolate in a 2009 taste test during a Royal Society of Chemistry taste challenge. Of the 300 taste test participants, two-thirds were raised outside of the U.K. and 74 percent preferred the taste of Cadbury to Hershey's.