Toblerone chocolate to cut iconic Matterhorn logo from packaging due to ‘Swissness’ laws

Toblerone chocolate packaging will no longer feature Switzerland’s iconic Matterhorn mountain as its American owner mondelez Later this year some production moves to Slovakia.

The company will also remove references to Toblerone being “Swiss chocolate”, instead declaring it to be “Founded in Switzerland in 1908”.

This is due to Swiss law, in force since 2017, which requires any product using “Swissness” to advertise a product or service to meet a set of core criteria. Milk-based products should be made exclusively in the country.

Lawmakers say it is a way of protecting the reputation attached to a Swiss-made product. Marks of “Swissness” can include references to the flag, cities such as Geneva, or in this case the famous mountain in the Alps known for its neat pyramidal shape.

Mondelez confirmed that it is changing its packaging due to Swiss law as it moves some production overseas.

It said the redesigned bar “features a modern and streamlined mountain logo that is in line with the geometric and triangular aesthetic,” and retains the subtle outline of a bear on a mountain face. A bear is on the coat of arms of Bern, the administrative capital of Switzerland.

Mondelez is also tweaking the Toblerone font and brand logo and incorporating the signature of Theodore Tobler, the founder of the distinctive nougat, almond and honey-filled chocolate.

Mondelez said Toblerone bars would continue to be produced in Switzerland and that it had invested in its Bern factory to increase its production of 100 gram bars to 90 million per year.

The changes, coming this year, said in a statement to CNBC, will help meet increased demand and “strengthen the Toblerone brand for the future.”