Huge blow to Irish import stores in U.S. as Cadbury is banned

British-made chocolates will no longer be available in the United States after a legal settlement. Irish import stores which rely heavily on Cadbury products, such as Irish Roses and other treats may be deeply affected.

Due to a settlement with the Hershey’s Company, Let’s Buy British Imports, (LBB), the leading importer of foods from Britain to America, has agreed to stop importing all Cadbury’s chocolate made overseas, the New York Times reports. 

The company will also halt imports on other chocolates such as British made KitKat bars, Toffee Crisps, Yorkie chocolate bars, and Maltesers. Hershey claims that packaging on these items too closely resembles some of their U.S. products.

Hershey representative Jeff Beckman said these products were not intended for sale in the United States and companies importing the products were infringing on its trademark and trade dress licensing.

“It is important for Hershey to protect its trademark rights and to prevent consumers from being confused or misled when they see a product name or product package that is confusingly similar to a Hershey name or trade dress,” Beckman told the Times.

The chocolate made overseas tastes vastly different than chocolate made here in the United States due to the higher fat content in British chocolate. As a comparison, the first ingredient listed on a British made Cadbury Dairy Milk bar is milk, whereas in Cadbury’s American counterpart, the first ingredient is sugar. 

The American bars also use emulsifying additives such as soy lecithin and PGPR, an ingredient made from castor beans which is used to replace raw cocoa butter. British bars use vegetable fats and different emulsifiers.

The New York Times reports that Hershey’s is looking to stop the sale of all Cadbury’s chocolate and the other bars in the United States.

British expatriate Nicky Perry, who owns Tea & Sympathy, a tea shop and restaurant; Carry On Tea & Sympathy, a British goods store; and A Salt & Battery, a fish and chips shop, all in New York City’s Greenwich Village, says she’d never sell Hershey’s chocolate.

“Things in the world are bad enough as it is,” said Perry, “and now you’re going to take away our chocolate?”