GENEVA (AP) – The makers of Toblerone are stripping images of Switzerland’s famed Matterhorn and the Swiss flag from the packaging of the milk-chocolate treat as they move some production to Slovakia.
Mondelez International of Deerfield, Illinois, which owns the Swiss-born brand, said on Monday that it’s in the process of adapting the packaging of Toblerone products to conform with strict rules in Switzerland about how products qualify for the coveted “Swissness” moniker – perceived by some as a standard of quality.
“The redesign of the packaging introduces a modernised and streamlined mountain logo that is consistent with the geometric and triangular aesthetic,” Mondelez spokeswoman Livia Kolmitz said in an e-mail. In June, the company announced plans to outsource production of some Toblerone chocolates later this year to Bratislava, the Slovak capital – where wages and the cost of living are far lower than in wealthy, expensive Switzerland.
The packaging change affects 35- and 50-gramme bars that will be made in Slovakia: Larger, 100-gramme “tablets” will still be produced in Bern, the Swiss capital, the company said.
A law on “Swissness” of products was adopted in 2017 and aims to protect the cachet of Swiss manufacturing.
