The German confectionery industry is responsible for producing 169 million chocolate Santa Clauses, latest insights from the Federal Association of the German Confectionery Industry (BDSI) reveal.
Approximately 169 million chocolate Santa Clauses were produced for the Christmas season this year, a survey conducted among member companies by the BDSI revealed. This marks an increase of 5.6% compared with the previous year. The reasons given have been due to higher orders from food retailers and growth in the export business.
“In difficult and uncertain political times, it is clear that confectionery is one of the little pleasures of everyday life. This applies in particular to the popular chocolate Santa Clauses, which bring a lot of joy on the upcoming St. Nicholas Day and Christmas,” explained Dr. Carsten Bernoth, General Manager of the BDSI.
Around two-third (approximately 109 million) of the chocolate Santa Clauses produced in Germany have been delivered to German food retailers, department stores and specialist retailers in recent weeks.
About a third of this total (around 60 million) of the chocolate Santa Clauses made in Germany are exported to neighbouring European countries but also to the UK, US, Eastern Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
The range of products on offer meet varying consumer requirements, whether this is for melt-in-the-mouth milk chocolate, white chocolate, praline filling or chocolate with a high cocoa content in a variety of sizes, designs and shapes. Vegan variants have also “enriched” the range of chocolate Santa Clauses, the BDSI noted, as an indicator of the industry adapting.
More and more of the hollow figures produced contain cocoa that is certified according to sustainability standards. In 2021, the proportion of certified cocoa in the confectionery sold in Germany came to 79%, according to the survey. In the first survey carried out into this topic in 2011, this proportion was 3%.
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