Creme egg catastrophe

Unpopular new recipe sees Cadbury sales plunge by £10million

WHEN Cadbury’s decided to change the recipe of its creme eggs last year, many fans were less than impressed.

Now the firm itself has been left with a nasty taste in its mouth after it was claimed that the move contributed to a £10million loss in sales last Easter.

The company switched from using the famous Cadbury Dairy Milk for the shells to a similar alternative in what appeared an attempt to save money.

However, the move triggered a consumer backlash. For many it was the last straw given earlier controversies over how Cadbury has cut corners and imposed stealth price rises by shrinking its bars and packs.

The change in the recipe coincided with a decision to cut the number of creme eggs in a multi-pack from six to five. Sales of creme eggs lost more than £6million over Easter compared to the year before, according to analysts.

Research by IRI for trade magazine The Grocer said this was the major factor in a fall of some £10million across Cadbury’s Easter lines.

As a result the firm, a British institution bought by Kraft of the US in 2010 for £11.5billion, saw its market share fall from 42 per cent to 40 per cent.

The firm’s American bosses have never been forgiven for reneging on a promise to keep open a Cadbury factory at Keynsham, near Bristol, when they took over the company. It was closed with the ‘despicable’ loss of 400 jobs when bosses claimed they had no idea how advanced plans had been for a new production site in Poland. Cadbury said the new recipe creme eggs were taste tested with consumers who were unable to tell any difference. However, critics argued it appeared to be sweeter and more pasty in texture.

The firm makes some 200million of the creme eggs every year and the run-up to Easter is crucial for sales. However, Easter is early this year, at the end of March, which will make life more difficult.

The company said the change was about improving efficiency rather than saving money. It said the chocolate was made from cocoa, milk and sugar, although the blend had changed marginally. Kraft has put Cadbury into the hands of a spin-off company called Mondelez, whose marketing manager, Claire Low, insisted the creme egg is really no different.

She said: ‘The fundamentals of Cadbury Creme Egg remain exactly the same. It’s simply not the case that Creme Egg has always been made with Cadbury Dairy Milk.’

She acknowledged that this year’s early Easter means recovering sales will be a tall order. ‘We are aware shorter seasons can be challenging,’ she said. ‘To strengthen our positioning, we will continue to invest in power brands, launching new seasonal products and a brand new Easter pack design.’

The Grocer said competition is heating up with Mars pushing its Galaxy Golden Eggs and Ferrero launching Kinder Joy.

‘The fundamentals remain the same