The company that produces the famous Toblerone bar has confirmed that they will no longer be using the iconic Matterhorn on their packaging.
The changes has been forced on brand owners Mondelez who are moving their production outside Switzerland to their Milka factory in Slovenia.
Mondelez say that this move is their response to “to increased demand worldwide and to grow our Toblerone brand for the future”.
Unfortunately a consequence of this shift away from Switzerland means that Toblerone will now contravene the ‘Swissness Act’ that has been in place since 2017.
Not ‘Made in Switzerland’
This law limits the use of national symbols such as a cross on a red background in food, industrial and service products that are not ‘Made in Switzerland’.
The Matterhorn is considered another unmistakably Swiss symbol and could not be used as the chocolate bar would no longer be produced entirely in Switzerland.
Research has shown that products labelled “Made in Switzerland” can sell for up to 20% more than those made elsewhere. That number shoots up to 50% in luxury items.
For food products to be marketed as ‘Made in Switzerland’, 80% of the raw materials must come from the country and most of the processing takes place there.
However, for milk-derived products such as chocolate, the required quota is 100%, with exceptions for ingredients that cannot be sourced from Switzerland, such as cocoa.
New ‘Geometric’ design
Although the new design has yet to be confirmed, Mondelez claims the new packaging will feature “introduce a modernised and streamlined mountain logo that aligns with the geometric and triangular aesthetic.”
The history of Toblerone
What will not change is the name. Toblerone was first produced in 1908. You can read a full history of Toblerone in our blog post about it here:
“Honey, I shrunk the sweets…”
Toblerone was in the news in 2016 when it changed the design of the bar to add more space between its distinctive triangles.
The idea was to cut costs, but after considerable criticism (and lots of free publicity), they reverted to the original shape two years later.
Accommodation in Zermatt
If you’d like to see the Matterhorn yourself (rather than on a box of chocolate!), then for advice on the right accommodation for you in Zermatt, please contact Matterhorn Chalets on +41 79 247 15 88
