Should Cadburys remain British, does it matter?

[blossie33]

Yes, Cadburys should definitely remain British - I'm from Birmingham and very proud of our home industries.

They should tell Kraft where to stick their insulting offer!

 

[Herbsman.]

No --- it was Cadbury's & then became Cadbury/Schweppes.

Actually it is back to Cadbury again now as it divested Schweppes last year!

You're all forgetting about Cadbury Trebor Basset.

CS now = Cadbury plc

CTB now = Cadbury UK

 

[editor]

As I understand it most of the stuff Cadbury's makes is not proper chocolate anyway- not by Swiss or Belgian standards.

It most certainly is chocolate, and mighty fine at that. Whether it matches the EU/US definition of the stuff is irrelevant to that fact.

Ever eaten US 'chocolate'? OMG, It's vile!

 

[T & P]

It most certainly is chocolate, and mighty fine at that. Whether it matches the EU/US definition of the stuff is irrelevant to that fact.

Ever eaten US 'chocolate'? OMG, It's vile!

No I haven't, but I'd imagine it's probably of the same quality as American 'cheese'

I don't know the ins and outs of it but I thought it was to do with either the quantity of cocoa used or the process to make it. All I know is that Belgian or Swiss chocolate tastes so much better and 'chocolatey' than anything Cadbury's makes.

 

[editor]

No I haven't, but I'd imagine it's probably of the same quality as American 'cheese'

I don't know the ins and outs of it but I thought it was to do with either the quantity of cocoa used or the process to make it. All I know is that Belgian or Swiss chocolate tastes so much better and 'chocolatey' than anything Cadbury's makes.

It's because vegetable oil is used in the manufacture of Cadburys.

In the US that doesn't make it chocolate, whereas sugar-infested concoctions like Hesheys are allowed to be labelled as chocolate.

The biggest ingredient in Hersheys is sugar. In Cadburys, it's milk. 'Nuff said.

 

[quimcunx]

Kraft buying Cadbury feels like another nail in the coffin of the idea of capitalism with any kind of a social conscience, though I'm not entirely sure how ethical cadbury really have been over recent years anyway.

Not sure how green and blacks is going to fit with the Kraft corporate ethos, but I'd be surprised if it's ethics survived intact.

Kraft should fuck right off IMO, but they probably won't

They didn't survive intact from being taken over by cadbury. IIRC all the bars were fair trade before, now only the mayan gold one is.


I don't want Kraft to takeover Cadbury. I'm still smarting from the whole Nestlé/Rowntree disgrace.

 

[Cid]

It most certainly is chocolate, and mighty fine at that. Whether it matches the EU/US definition of the stuff is irrelevant to that fact.

Ever eaten US 'chocolate'? OMG, It's vile!

Cadbury's is pretty shit, but it does at least taste chocolaty I suppose... Anyway, loads of the shops in France, Italy sell which isn't much better ime.

 

[weltweit]

... I don't want Kraft to takeover Cadbury. I'm still smarting from the whole Nestlé/Rowntree disgrace.

No, I don't want Kraft to takeover Cadbury either.

But it is more to do with wanting British companies to remain British than anything else. Plus I "think" Cadbury has a reputation of good corporate governance.

Faceless multinationals can become ruthless and soulless, I read editors post on the previous page with interest about the Kraft plant in South America. It certainly seems that Kraft are basically a pretty ruthless corporation.

 

[quimcunx]

I don't want the world to be reduced to 10 transnational megacorporations who provide us with everything from chocolate to education to tv programmes to jewellery to medical services.

 

[weltweit]

I don't want the world to be reduced to 10 transnational megacorporations who provide us with everything from chocolate to education to tv programmes to jewellery to medical services.

Luckily I don't think that will happen.

What seems to happen is when corporations get too large, they stifle innovation because of control from the centre, their returns fall and a corporate raider buys the lot and breaks it up into smaller more logical units.

It seems similar to what happens to an empire when it gets too big, it becomes unwieldy, control is not what it was and decline sets in.

 

[Pie 1]

Kraft make some of the worst foods known to mankind.

 

[editor]

That yellow stuff is scaring me.

 

[skyscraper101]

I had this once in America.

The boundaries for definition of 'cheese' are entirely questionable in this instance.

 

[Chz]

Quite frankly, Rowntree going to Nestle was much more distressing than Cadburys going to Kraft would be.

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

I had this once in America.

The boundaries for definition of 'cheese' are entirely questionable in this instance.

No question it's not Gruyere, but you can't hold Gruyere upside down, and squirt it directly down your throat, either.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

American chocolate is rubbish though, except for Russell Stover

There are all kinds of excellent chocolatiers in the US. We just don't share them around with mere foreigners.

 

[TheFaxMachine]

And the idea of Kraft owning Cadbury was bad enough... Now it seems Hershey's may want a piece. Lovely(!)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8365609.stm

 

[PacificOcean]

It's because vegetable oil is used in the manufacture of Cadburys.

In the US that doesn't make it chocolate, whereas sugar-infested concoctions like Hesheys are allowed to be labelled as chocolate.

The biggest ingredient in Hersheys is sugar. In Cadburys, it's milk. 'Nuff said.

Linky please?

Our "chocolate" is mainly cocoa mass, oils and various bit's and bobs - It has skimmed milk powder in it*, which is about as close to milk as it gets.

You couldn't label British "chocolate" as chocolate on the Continent.

I don't see how the US stuff can be much worse?

*I know the ad says a glass and and a half of milk in every bar, but they are going on the fact that if you rehydrated the skimmed milk powder then it would be a glass and a half. So they can get away with that with the ASA.

 

[Chz]

The US stuff is worse. Just not by very much.

 

[weltweit]

Apparently Cadbury is now talking to Hershey ..

Unite hoped Cadbury would resist a takeover.

 

[weltweit]

Craft is apparently about to up its offer to £12bn a level which Cadbury management might accept or recommend the bid.

Hershey are being quiet at the moment.

 

[blossie33]

Sounds like Cadbury and Kraft have come to some sort of deal - more to follow later today.

Extremely sorry to hear that news - the workers and the Cadbury family don't want it but of course that matters not a jot when it comes to money and big business

Just hope people aren't going to loose their jobs.

 

[invisibleplanet]

A nation should always maintain native industries vital to the survival of the people. Chocolate qualifies.

Agree wholeheartedly.

 

[Wookey]

This is such a shame.

 

[William of Walworth]

Sounds like Cadbury and Kraft have come to some sort of deal - more to follow later today.
.

BBC link on this story

 

[invisibleplanet]

If Kraft tinker with the formula of CDM and Bournville, they'll be doomed.

 

[editor]

It's always depressing to see independents being taken over by mega-corps, especially when the sale has been pre-empted by foreign shareholders and fucking hedge fund managers only interested in short term gains with the deal going through against the wishes of the workforce

Listen to this shocking spin from Cadbury's chairman:

Carr said the new offer represents "good value" for Cadbury shareholders and that directors were "pleased with the commitment that Kraft Foods has made to our heritage, values and people throughout the world".

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/jan/19/cadbury-accepts-kraft-bid

 

[pboi]

40%of Cadburys shareholders are American

Great power lies with funds and people like Buffet

Restrictions should be put in place to monitor things like that, if people have problems with Companies buying other companies.

Massive loss for this country imo, shame

 

[Maurice Picarda]

Listen to this shocking spin from Cadbury's chairman:

It's pretty much "blessed are the cheesemakers".

 

[invisibleplanet]

From the Guardian comments: "Kraft bought Terry's in York with very very similar promises. Sixteen months later, the factory has been relocated to Poland, all staff are redundant and we're getting more unsaleable apartment blocks on the former site. Brilliant! Good luck Bournville and Cadbury's staff from York...you're going to need it."

And, I might add, they (Terry's under Kraft) reduced the thickness to thinness and changed the texture of the chocs.