Matchmakers - did they think we wouldn't notice!

[GeorgeA12]

Can't believe it....just opened the traditional mint Matchmakers for Christmas. They have only gone and stuck them inside a plastic tray inside the cardboard box in a disguised effort so they are now smaller in length! The matchmakers don't even touch the sides inside the plastic tray.

Over 40 years now I've had these and they always go the width of the box with a black cover over them.

Feel like there should be some law to say that they must put some warning sign on the packaging for three months or so if they make things smaller or change the recipe. I bought this box in good faith as it's the same size as previous years but they didn't tell me they were smaller! I wouldn't have bought them.

Anyone else noticed changes to their favourite Christmas treats or food?

Just had a nosy on the Asda site at Cadbury & there's something called Caramilk.

Is that like Caramac?

We always had those solid chocolate ones from Cadbury for our tree, and I was born mid-80's. We also used to keep the Santa back for Christmas Eve.

No Cadburys definitely used to do square slabs of chocolate as tree decorations.

Tell me it isn’t true 😱

I noticed this week, that Tesco's sliced loaves have been reduced from 800g to 600g.

Is that a Brexit thing? I remember the big outrage when it was revealed that the EU made a law that loaves could only be sold in 400g or 800g varieties.

They are quick to tell us about 'improved recipes' but don't tell us when they are underhand.

I'd love to see them being honest in their adverts and on the wrappers, admitting that they've now made them cheap and nasty in order to maximise their profits! The problem is, though, that the (few) only companies with the integrity to do this would never have nastified their products to chase the cash in the first place.

I don’t understand why we aren’t allowed to choose sugar if we want to. Give us the choice, people have choice in other areas of life, why not this !

It's infuriating, isn't it? To be fair to the government, I don't think they ever actively intended to stop us from choosing sugar; just to cash in make us think carefully about our food and drink choices.

When they brought in minimum pricing per unit for alcohol, it was just accepted that the price of booze would go up; nobody suggested stuffing it full of liquidised hay or petit pois like they did with petrol and still calling it wine or beer. Then again, the fact that they have to clearly state the ABV on the bottle or can would have made that much harder to get away with than just reducing the size by 100g, like they do with chocolate.

Of course, though, it was obvious all along what was going to happen - that we wouldn't even have the choice to pay more for products containing proper sugar rather than nasty sweeteners, other than a very few small expensive brands that you have to work hard to seek out. Some haven't quite removed all of the sugar, but have replaced a big old chunk of it with sweeteners.

Even Lucozade did it - the drink that had as its USP the fact that it was very sugary indeed. They did a huge number on people with diabetes as well, who had long been advised to drink it when they had a hypo. They had one special thing that set them apart from other drinks, but they decided to homogenise and get rid of it.

Yes, Lucozade is annoying and very stupid! A glucose drink with bugger-all glucose 🙄 They could have kept the Original with full glucose amounts, and then messed with the other (repulsive) flavours.

Mars Bars - apart from the fact they’ve shrunk, the chocolate on the top is ridiculously thin now. It used to be really thick and chunky - so much so that you could break it off like a wonderful thick chocolate slab.

Rocky Bars - same with them. The USP was the incredibly thick chocolate, but now it’s a smear. Horrible.

Roses Chocolates - now vile. All taste strangely of caramel and the ‘different’ flavours basically taste the same.

Quality Street - again, lost the difference between flavours and infused with bloody caramel everywhere 😡

Thorntons chocolates - used to be a nice treat. Now taste cheap and like any other kind of chocolate.

Years ago a woman wrote to Watchdog because Rolo decreased the amount from 11 to 10. The lady concerned used to buy a pack giving her 2 children 5 each leaving herself the last rolo then one day she found herself rololess.

Yes! Huge great valleys between them now with not very much chocolate there... so disappointing and much bloody harder to break bits off too.

I wish Cadburys would bring out a nostalgia range. Even if they only did it once a year at Christmas. Proper original recipe Dairy Milk in the old paper wrapper. Original recipe Wispa bars. They could charge 5 times what they charge for the vile American shit that they sell as Cadbury chocolate now and I’m sure people would still buy it.

On the plus side Toblerone is one of the few, that don't have palm oil in. Still tastes like it always did. For now..........

When I was a kid my lovely dad worked at Cadbury. Always little brown paper bags of seconds in our house. We were very popular with the kids on our street. 😁

Loving the Cadbury’s tree chocs adoration! I’ve just been on the Sainsbury’s website in the pathetic hope that I might have been wrong about them being phased out, and the new ones are being universally slated!

How disappointing. I've got some for Christmas as well.

This may have already been mentioned, but what on earth have Quality Street done to the wrappers? We opened the tin yesterday to find half had the foil wrappers and half have these awful, waxy paper wrappers. Surely the point of QS is that they look all glittery and enticing, like jewels? The new wrappers aren't appealing at all.

I remember the Dairy Milk slab tree decorations. I can also remember having fondant filled ones when I was little.

Do they even do tins anymore ? I find the plastic tub very meh. The lid isn't a great fit and they don't feel half as reusable as the old style tins.

I have certainly seen tins of Roses this year as I contemplated.getting one as I needed a new cake storage tin! There are still plastic tubs - the tins are a bigger size.

I bought some Matchmakers the other day and they were disgusting. Plastic texture, strong artificial mint flavour to try and cover the fact the chocolate was like tasteless wax. Even with the smaller box I couldn't finish them.
Why do they ruin everything

It's all so depressing isnt it. I've got After Eights and Twiglets in the cupboard and I'm not looking forward to them now 😞

I've been trying to find cherryade and cream soda that don't have sweeteners added but I don't think they exist anymore.

One of my most exciting Christmas memories is the delivery of corona pop. I think the milkman delivered it.

The cherryade and cream soda were my favourites and a once a year delicious treat. Every one I've tried tastes awful now, overly sweet and sickly.

The only fizzy drink that still tastes the same as my childhood is Appletiser.

Same

Quality Street changed to the waxy wrappers because the glitzy ones are not eco friendly.
I will never forgive Lucozade for their crimes against taste and decency.

They don't taste right now either.

Agree with pp
Corona cherryade in the 70s and early 80s was the best ever.

It's halfy-halfy - absolute muck.

It is indeed true!

You no longer get a hazelnut in every bite!

Thank you that’s another to avoid.

Thank you I’ll look out for these.

Missing point, but they were in those plastic sleeves last year too.