The chocolate bar Toblerone will no longer feature two of its most iconic markings. The candy will move on from its “Swiss chocolate” branding later this year and take the iconic Matterhorn mountain off its packages, according to the candy’s owner.
Mondelez International announced the decision in a statement shared with CNBC, saying it was going to shake up the packaging for one of the most iconic candy bars after the U.S. company announced it would be moving some production to Slovakia later this year.
The reason for the shakeup is due to a Swiss law that requires any product using “Swissness” to advertise a product or service to meet certain criteria, which for milk-based products means being manufactured exclusively in the country.
Because Mondelez is moving some manufacturing for the product out of the country, packages will now say “Established in Switzerland in 1908” and remove the iconic sketch of the Swiss mountain, the release said.
The legislation is meant to protect the prestige Swiss lawmakers say comes with anything Swiss-made.
The definition of “Swissness” seems to be a little fluid, but can include things like the country’s flag, references to major cities, or iconic landmarks like in the case of the Matterhorn.
Because of the legislation, Mondelez is redesigning the bar’s packaging to have a “modernized and streamlined mountain logo that is consistent with the geometric and triangular aesthetic.” The new logo will also retain the subtle outline of a bear on the face of the mountain.
The font on the Toblerone bar is also changing along with the brand logo, and the company said it would instead include the signature of the chocolate’s founder, Theodor Tobler.
While some production is being moved out of Switzerland, Mondelez said in its statement that it isn’t cutting all of its production in the country but instead increasing manufacturing by 90 million units a year at its factory in the nation’s capital, Bern.
Overall, the moves are meant to “strengthen the Toblerone brand for the future” and meet increased demand for the company’s candy, the statement shared.
Related
Related
