Why is your favourite chocolate getting more expensive?

The cost of raw materials used to make chocolate has gone up and even the cheapest chocolate treats have become dearer. 

Black Thunder, manufactured by Japanese confectioner Yuraku, is one of the cheapest chocolate bars in the world. Costing just 30¥ (CHF0.20), its price has remained unchanged for three decades. Hence Japanese chocolate lovers were caught unawares when the company decided to raise the price to 35¥ from March 1.  

Even when Yuraku decided to source more expensive sustainable cocoa from Swiss firm Barry Callebaut in 2019, the company did not pass on the extra cost to customers. So, what’s happening now? 

According to Barry Callebaut’s first quarter report, cocoa prices were on average 8.1% higher than the previous year because demand for cocoa beans outstripped supply, after two years of sizable surpluses. 

Sugar also became more expensive. While the world market price for sugar increased by 1.4% due to lower exports from India, the price rise in Europe was almost 92% due to low stocks and high energy prices.  

Dairy used in milk chocolate is also to blame. The cost of milk had come down from its peak in April 2022 but it was still 15.7% higher than the same period the year before.  

Barry Callebaut mainly operates with a pricing model which passes on changes of raw material prices to its customers like Yuraku. If the price of raw materials increases between the signing of the contract and the time of delivery due to inflation, then it is Yuraku that has to pay more.  

“We consider our pricing model fair because it goes in both directions. If the prices of raw materials or transportation costs decrease, our customers pay less,” says company spokesperson Frank Keidel. 

But it is not just chocolate that has been hit by inflation. Swiss food giant Nestlé increased the price of all its products by an average of 8.2% in 2022. However, confectionery, including its famous KitKat chocolate bar, was the least affected among its product portfolio.  

Edited by Virginie Mangin