The price of some festive chocolate boxes has skyrocketed by more than 50% compared with last year, says Which?
Despite overall supermarket food and drink inflation slowing to 8.3% in November, the consumer watchdog says price rises on chocolate were almost twice as much at 15.3%.
Here’s a look at the most dramatic price rises among the UK’s sweet treats.
• At Asda, Green & Black’s Organic Classic Miniature Chocolate Bar Collection 180g went from £3.59 on average in the three months to the end of November 2022, to £6 on average in the same period this year – an increase of 67.2%.
• Nestle’s Black Magic 348g and Dairy Box Medium Chocolate Box 326g were both £3.35 on average at Asda in 2022 but rose to an average of £5.25 this year – an increase of 56.6%.
• At Tesco, Cadbury Mini Snowballs Chocolate Bag 80g, Cadbury Mini Snowballs Chocolate Bar 110g and Terry’s Chocolate Orange Minis Bag 125g increased by 50%, from £1 on average to £1.50.
• At Sainsbury’s, Which? found that Quality Street Matchmakers Zingy Orange Chocolate Box 120g went from an average of £1.26 to £1.89 in the space of a year, an increase of 49.9%.
Some non-festive chocolates saw even higher price hikes, Which? said, with Asda’s Snack Size Chocolate Caramel Chews (6x38g) increasing from an average 65p in 2022 to £1.35 on average in 2023, a hike of 107.7%.
Bolands Elite Chocolate Kimberley Teacakes 132g at Morrisons saw the average price hiked from £1.30 to £2.59, an increase of 99.2%.
The discounters’ take on the Mars bar – Aldi’s Dairyfine Titan and Lidl’s Mister Choc Choco & Caramel Bars (six packs) – both saw similar increases from 62p and 65p respectively on average to £1.09 and £1.08 on average – a rise of 75.8% and 66.8%.
Why are prices soaring?
Manufacturers have largely placed the blame on the increasing cost of key ingredients, particularly cocoa and sugar, with both commodities hit by supply issues and poor production in the last 12 months.
Despite the higher prices this year, both Cadbury owner Mondelez and Quality Street maker Nestle have reported an increase in sales as cash-strapped shoppers turn to more basic gifts and treats this Christmas.
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British Retail Consortium economist Harvir Dhillon said: “Chocolate has been hard hit by soaring global cocoa prices, which have almost doubled over the last year, reaching a 46-year high. The cost of cocoa has been badly affected by poor harvests in parts of Africa.”
What do the chocolate makers say?
A Sainsbury’s spokesperson said: “We have invested millions into keeping prices low on the products we know our customers buy most often and the cost of these items have stayed well below the headline rate of inflation.”
Most customers are members of the supermarket’s reward scheme, Nectar, the spokesperson added, and therefore benefit from lower prices – the Quality Street Matchmakers Zingy Orange Chocolate Box priced at £1.25, for example.
Which? said its figures included special offer prices but not multi-buys or loyalty discounts, as not all customers are prepared to sign up for these.
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A spokesperson for Mondelez said the brand looks “to absorb costs wherever we can” and understands times are difficult for shoppers.
“However, we are continuing to incur significant increases in input costs across our supply chain which has meant we occasionally have to make difficult decisions, such as slightly increasing the price of some of our products,” the spokesperson added.
A Nestle spokesperson also said the brand had faced “significant increases in the cost of raw materials, energy, packaging and transportation”.
They added: “We are doing everything we can to manage these costs in the short-term, but in order to maintain the highest standards of quality, it is sometimes necessary to make minor adjustments to the weights of our products.
“We also aim to make any long-term changes to prices gradually and responsibly.”
