KINDER Eggs might be a beloved childhood treat for many. Even today, when you are at the shopping mall, you will see Kinder Joy with a toy at the billing counter. However, Kinder Joy with the small toy inside it and some of its ingredients are the main reason many countries do not approve of it.
Let’s find out why Kinder Joy was banned in some regions.
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What Is Kinder Joy?
Kinder Surprise or Kinder Joy is popular sweet chocolate in the form of a small egg. It’s one of several products under the “Kinder” brand and was invented by Italian candy maker Ferrero. Ferrero was established in 1974, and it introduced Kinder Joy as its Kinder brand product.
You will see colorful Kinder Joy egg-shaped packaging and see how two halves split off of one piece. One half contains layers of cocoa and milk, while the other holds a toy and spoon. This sweet treat has been a hit in Italy since its release in 2001. Now, it is sold in over 100 nations worldwide.
In some regions, it is also known as Kinder Egg or Egg Chocolate. As a Kinder Surprise, the company started offering a toy inside the Kinder Joy in order to attract children, and that’s when problems began.
Why are Kinder Eggs Banned in the US?
Confectionary products that contain a “non-nutritive object” are not allowed, per the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act. Now since Kinder Joy or Kinder Eggs contain a non-nutritive object, the US government has banned Kinder Joy.
Ferrero announced in 2017 that it would launch Kinder Joy in the USA in 2018. But the USA had strictly mentioned that “the sale of any candy that has embedded in it a toy or trinket” would not be allowed. The reason for this change is that it does not want children to eat any of the candy once they find a hidden toy inside. This can lead to the danger of choking on such toys if eaten by kids.
However, Kinder mentions clearly on the packaging that the Kinder Surprise is not suitable for kids under three years as it contains a toy that can be swallowed by them.
Neighbor countries of the USA such as Canada and Mexico had green signaled the sale of Kinder Joy Surprise Eggs in the market. However. Ferrero is selling the Kinder Joy in the US market after May 2018 with chocolate and a toy separately but in a single packaging.
Similarly, the UK also allowed the sale of Kinder Joy in 2015, although the product has been available since 2001.
Is Kinder Joy Banned in Other Countries?
Chile
In 2013, a law was passed in Chile that banned companies from offering free items to children in order to influence their purchase decision.
This new food label law got underway in 2016 and forced the food industry to include on each product labels warning customers about any item high in calories, sugar, sodium, and saturated fat.
Products with these labels are banned from using toys in their marketing. This includes Kinder Surprise, and they haven’t been allowed since.
United Kingdom
In the EU, more children have died from choking on toys that are included as an ingredient in edible eggs. These parents campaigned for the products to be removed and save more children’s lives. Ten kids died worldwide due to choking because of Kinder toy surprises included in the chocolate egg. Another similar case was reported, but it was attributed to different manufacturers ‘ products.
The company and the product defender said that these fatalities were unfortunate. The House of Commons and the Department of Trade and Industry both said that this tragic case “was caused by the ingestion of a small part of the egg’s contents.”
There are a lot of products in the market that has small parts, so banning them all would mean you’re left with few options. Furthermore, many children already know how to put objects into their mouths, so we could just provide additional supervision and education.
