Business
Penguin and Club bars can no longer be described as chocolate
McVitie’s Penguin and Club bars are no longer classed as chocolate after rising cocoa prices led the makers to switch to using other ingredients.
Club bars had previously been marketed under the slogan: “If you like a lot of chocolate on your biscuit, join our club”.
But both treats are now described as “chocolate flavour” because the amount of cocoa they contain has been reduced after owner Pladis had to find cheaper alternatives to the main ingredient in chocolate.
The UK sources cocoa beans from West Africa and poor harvests as a result of severe drought conditions in cocoa-producing countries, such as Ivory Coast and Ghana, have led to restricted supplies and higher prices.
The change to the bars’ ingredients was first reported by trade journal The Grocer.
A spokesperson for Pladis said: “We made some changes to McVitie’s Penguin and Club earlier this year, where we are using a chocolate flavour coating with cocoa mass, rather than a chocolate coating.”
“Sensory testing with consumers shows the new coatings deliver the same great taste as the originals,” the spokesperson added.
The company said it was committed to delivering “great-tasting snacks” while managing rising costs, and it only adjusted its recipes when “necessary”.
Confectionery historian Alex Hutchinson said many confectioners were lowering the amount of cocoa ingredients in their chocolate in favour of cheaper alternatives.
When processed, a cocoa bean becomes cocoa liquor, which contains 50% each of cocoa solids and cocoa butter.
But manufacturers looking to save costs can reduce the amount of ingredients they use which are directly from the bean, and instead use alternatives such as palm oil or shea butter.
For milk chocolate to be classified as such, UK regulations say it should be made up of about 20% cocoa solids, slightly lower than EU regulations which stipulate a minimum of 25%.
The move from Pladis, which owns well-known household favourites such as McVities, Godiva, Go Ahead and Jacobs, means the firm is now using less than 20% cocoa-bean derived ingredients in its “chocolate” coating for Club and Penguin.
Although cocoa commodity prices have eased slightly recently, a surge in costs over the past three years led to pricier Easter eggs and squeezed profit margins at some chocolate-sellers.
“During my lifetime the cost of cocoa has stayed around $3,500 (£2,607) dollars a tonne and last year it soared to $11,500 (£8,567) a tonne,” said Ms Hutchinson.
“Chocolate costs more than ever before,” she added.
It is unusual for a senior figure at the Bank to be so forthright on market movements.
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Consumer confidence has fallen for the third consecutive month amid household “jitters” over rapid price rises, figures show.
GfK’s long-running consumer confidence index fell four points to minus 25 in April, following falls of two points and three points in March and February respectively.
The deepening concern was driven by perceptions of the UK economy, with a six-point slide in confidence for the next 12 months to minus 43, its lowest level since February 2023.
Confidence in personal finances over the coming year fell five points to minus four – one point lower than this time last year.
The major purchase index – an indicator of confidence in buying big ticket items – held steady, albeit at minus 18 but one point better than last April.
The only measure to improve was the savings index – often an indication that households are concerned about their finances and looking to build contingency funds – which is up five points to 32.
Neil Bellamy, consumer insights director at GfK, said: “Consumers really do have the jitters now.
“It is a year since we last saw a monthly drop of this size, and we have to go back to October 2023 to find the last time consumer confidence was lower.
“Everyone is grappling with rapid price rises, especially at the fuel pumps, which are taking a dent out of household budgets, and people know further price hikes are coming.
“Consumer confidence is deteriorating sharply, with fuel prices and threats of more energy price increases acting as constant reminders of inflation.
“While the Gulf crisis is intensifying pressures, much of the current strain reflects earlier domestic cost increases.
“How long can all this disruption and pain continue?”
People walk past a Nike store in New York City, on April 2, 2025.
Kylie Cooper | Reuters
Nike announced a new round of layoffs Thursday affecting approximately 1,400 employees across the organization, mostly concentrated in its technology department.
In a note from COO Venkatesh Alagirisamy, the company said the layoffs were part of Nike’s broader “Win Now” turnaround strategy aiming to reshape its technology team, modernize its Air manufacturing, move some of its Converse Footwear operations and integrate its materials supply chain work into its footwear and apparel supply chain teams.
“Collectively, these changes will result in a reduction of approximately 1,400 roles in global operations, with the majority in technology,” Alagirisamy wrote. “These reductions are very hard for the teammates directly affected and for the teams around them, too.”
A Nike spokesperson said the layoffs are about better positioning the organization for the current pace of sports and accelerating its growth. The layoffs affect employees across North America, Asia and Europe and represent less than 2% of the company’s total global head count.
“This is not a new direction,” Alagirisamy wrote. “It is the next phase of the work already underway.”
Affected employees will be notified beginning Thursday, Nike added.
CEO Elliott Hill has been working to turn Nike around after years of slumping sales. While Hill has made some initial progress, it’s come with some bumps in the road.
Nike announced 775 job cuts in January, primarily at its U.S.-based distribution centers, due to the company’s work in accelerating its use of automation. At the time, the company said the cuts are part of Nike’s goal to return to “long-term, profitable growth.”
Those layoffs came on top of a round of cuts last summer that affected less than 1% of Nike’s corporate staff as part of the company’s efforts to realign the business.
In its third fiscal quarter earnings report last month, the retailer warned that sales will continue to fall for the rest of the year, primarily led by an anticipated 20% decline in China during the current quarter.
— CNBC’s Jessica Golden contributed to this report.
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