HEALTHIER versions of Brits’ favourite sweets have had their pack sizes shrunk but cost more than their sugary originals.
Dairy Milk maker charges customers more for low sugar versions and shrinks pack sizes.
Mondelez’s originals and its more expensive less sugary versions
Cadbury owner Mondelez has rejigged top-selling brands to contain 30 percent less sugar – ahead of restrictions promoting products high in fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) coming into force in October.
The company’s traditional Maynards Bassetts Wine Gums cost £1.50 for 190 grams but its “30 percent less sugar” version is £1.25 for 130 grams, 23 per cent more expensive for nine fewer sweeties.
Mondelez’s overhaul of its Cadbury cocoa powder is also ripping-off consumers.
Its “30% less sugar” tin costs £3 at Sainsbury’s, while a standard full-sugar jar is just £2 at the same grocer – a huge 50 percent markup.
The new low-sugar cocoa version at 280g stretches to an average of six more cups of hot chocolate than the 250g original – but gram for gram consumers are forking out an extra 34 per cent more at the till.
When Mondelez launched its “Dairy Milk 30% less Sugar” bar , the chocolate was 22 per cent smaller than the standard version but still cost the same amount.
Mondelez said that it took its UK team of 20 scientists and nutritionists two years to achieve.
A new series of rules on the promotion of HFSS foods is due to hit England and Wales this autumn.
The legislation restricts food and drink firms’ in-store promotions of fatty, salty and sugary treats.
A Mondelez International spokesman said: “Our non-HFSS recipes require reformulation techniques which are complex and require investment, and often use recipes which are more expensive to make.
“All of this is reflected in our recommended retail price.
“Retailers are free to set prices in store and these don’t always fully align to our recommended retail price.”
Earlier this year it blamed inflation for shrinking the size of its Dairy Milk sharing bars by 10 per cent but keeping the price the same.