Have shoppers finally reached their limit when it comes to chocolate inflation? According to recent social media posts about the price of Maltesers… yes.
“There is no justification for the outrageous price of Maltesers – I refuse to buy them,” posted one shopper. “Sainsbury’s take the piss,” posted another. “Selling white chocolate Maltesers for the same price per kg as ribeye steak.”
They’re not quite right. At £31.74 per kilo, Maltesers White More To Share 126g are actually slightly cheaper by weight in Sainsbury’s than the retailer’s British or Irish 21 Day Matured Ribeye Steak 225g (£32.22/kg). However, as reported by The Grocer yesterday, they are dearer by weight than its British or Irish 21 Day Matured Sirloin Steak 225g, which is £31.11 per kilo.
Beef prices have been increasing at an unprecedented level, with inflation at 27.4%, the highest rate on record. And driven by tight supply and elevated production costs, prices show no sign of slowing down in the new year. So the fact that a kilo of Maltesers would currently be more expensive than a kilo of sirloin shows just how dire things are for chocolate manufacturers.
No chocolate crash
Chocolate prices have risen by 15% in a year, according to the Office for National Statistics [October 2025] after global cocoa prices hit a record $12k per tonne in January 2025. Record levels of inflation were triggered by heavy rainfall and drought hitting successive crops in Ghana and Ivory Coast, according to the World Bank.
One senior industry insider told The Grocer the percentage increase on cocoa butter (which is used to make white chocolate) was “even higher” than on cocoa mass, which explains why white chocolate Maltesers are more expensive by weight than their milk chocolate counterparts.
But Maltesers isn’t the only chocolate brand to have received backlash over the pricing of its chocolate. In a recent Tesco review, a shopper branded Cadbury’s decision to shrink Freddo multipacks without reducing the price as “shameful”.
And in response to Nestlé shrinking its Kit Kat multipacks, an X user asked the company: “did you really think we wldnt notice that you’d inc the price of #Kitkat yet again, only this time you’ve also removed one from the pack?… That’s ridiculous.” [sic]
Shoppers’ outrage would suggest a corresponding crash in chocolate sales. Indeed, The Grocer’s Top Products 2025 Survey will next week show that chocolate volumes are indeed down – but they haven’t fallen as dramatically as one might expect. Branded lines are faring better than own label, despite the various PR blunders over pricing, with seven of the top 10 chocolate brands in volume growth.
One of those brands is Maltesers, whose volume sales are up 4.2% on 14% value growth [NIQ 52 w/e 7 September 2025]. It has cashed in an extra £36.6m this year, taking its retail sales value to £298.9m.
‘Better than steak’
While the NIQ data used in The Grocer’s upcoming Top Products Survey doesn’t capture the impact of the latest round of price increases (pre-promotional prices are up by as much as 16% in the 12 weeks to 26 November). However, it goes some way towards demonstrating the brand’s resilience in the face of inflationary pressures.
According to NIQ senior analytics executive Anupama Sanakal, Maltesers was buoyed by “effective promotions and a well-received campaign that resonated with parents”.
Sanakal is referring to Maltesers’ Mother Lover campaign, which launched last September. For the campaign, Mars Wrigley spoke to mums and partners, as well as parenting and workplace experts, to “better understand the challenges that working mums face”.
June’s reintroduction of white chocolate Maltesers after more than a decade’s absence will also undoubtedly have driven sales. It followed “significant consumer demand” for their return, with multiple petitions in favour of the cause appearing online, according to Mars Wrigley.
So, if Maltesers continues to stay culturally relevant through its marketing and innovation, who’s to say shoppers won’t continue to fork out for its products – even if they are dearer than sirloin steak? After all, as one colleague at The Grocer yesterday argued: Maltesers are “way better than steak in every way”.
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