WHEN I decided to treat my family to large versions of their favourite Easter eggs this year, I was shocked to discover what was inside.
Popular eggs made by Cadbury and Nestle cost up to two-thirds more than the regular boxes – but had almost the same contents.
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The regular Cadbury Creme Egg Easter egg, which I bought for £3 from Tesco, contained a hollow chocolate egg and one creme egg.
But although the larger £5 version came in a bigger box with a ribbon handle, it had exactly the same size hollow egg inside, but two creme eggs instead of one.
You can buy an individual creme egg for as little as 50p.
It means I spent £1.50 over the odds by paying extra for a larger box.
When I investigated, it turned out several other Cadbury eggs had a similar gap between cost and contents.
The regular Twirl Easter egg, containing one hollow chocolate egg and one Twirl, costs £3 at Asda.
But the large version contained the same, plus one orange Twirl.
You could buy an individual orange Twirl for just 75p but the larger egg still cost £4.50 – £1.50 more.
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The Caramel Easter egg contained one hollow chocolate egg and one Caramel egg for £3.
But the larger Caramel and Dairy Milk version contained the same hollow egg and replaced the Caramel egg with one Caramel bar and one Dairy Milk bar.
The additional contents were worth just 80p more, yet the larger Easter egg cost £4.50 – 50% more than the regular box.
I discovered that Cadbury was not the only brand to sell large and regular Easter egg boxes containing the same size Easter eggs.
Nestle’s regular Yorkie Easter egg contained one hollow chocolate egg and one Yorkie bar, for £3.
But its large version – which came in a much bigger box – contained exactly the same contents, plus one Yorkie raisin and biscuit bar.
The total cost was £4.50 or £1.50 more – but you can buy a Yorkie raisin and biscuit bar for just 75p.
Consumer expert Martyn James agreed that the larger eggs were a rip-off.
He told The Sun: “The stinginess of the big chocolatiers has given the phrase ‘empty shell’ a whole new literal meaning.
“Every year, the chocolate content decreases, the packaging distracts us from what’s actually inside and the treats are often an insult.
“Shoppers will be so fed up with these ever-diminishing returns that we could see the death of the Easter Egg in the coming years if this isn’t sorted out.”
He recommended shoppers wait until Easter Monday to buy their eggs when prices are slashed in post-Easter sales.
A Cadbury spokesperson said: “We offer Cadbury fans a wide selection of Easter treats with different size and price options – this includes fan favourites as well as new additions.
“We continuously review our range, always listening to consumer feedback which is reflected in our 2023 line up.”
A Nestle spokesperson said: “We offer a range of seasonal Easter treats in different sizes and prices.
“Final pricing is always at the discretion of individual retailers.”
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