Hershey's Stops British Cadbury Sale in U.S.

Chocolate manufacturer Hershey's has decided to stop importing the British-made Cadbury chocolates in the United States to settle a lawsuit against Let's Buy British Imports, The Huffington Post reported.

The Hershey Company made the deal with Let's Buy British Imports, which is the company responsible for importing Cadbury chocolates from the United Kingdom. LBB also decided to halt imports of the British-made Kit Kats.

Consumers will still be able to buy Cadbury products though, as Hershey owns the rights to make and sell the Cadbury name in the U.S. However, the chocolates may end up tasking differently as the recipes used in the U.S. are different than those from the U.K., the former reportedly using sugar as its first ingredient while the latter using milk first.

The same goes for Kit Kat, as the American version will still be around, just not the British ones. Other chocolates that are being taken off the U.S. market are Toffee Crisps and Yorkie bars, according to Business Insider.

The lawsuit between Hershey's and Cadbury has been going on since last year when the former accused the latter of violating trademark laws when it imports foreign candies and chocolates to the country. They argued that as the rights to sell the sweets already fell to the U.S., Cadbury was infringing on their territory, according to CNN.

Hershey's Spokesman Jeff Beckman stated, "Given the immeasurable value of our brands, we work hard to protect these important intellectual assets and defend them against infringement."

While Hershey's may have legitimate grounds to ban the sweets, fans, consumers and business owners who rely on the British confectionary company and its products were not at all pleased over the development.

New York store Tea & Sympathy specializes in selling British goods and were outraged over what happened. They posted a notice on their Facebook page informing their customers that they could no longer import the "real Cadbury chocolate" from England.

"They want us to sell their dreadful Cadbury approximation, but we can't in good conscience sell you such awful chocolate when we have made our reputation on selling you the yummy real English stuff," they wrote.

The same goes for Brooklyn Heights shop Two for the Pot, whose owner John McGill is displeased, especially as his customers preferred the more "superior" British-made treats. He also shared that warehouses were emptied quickly when news of the lawsuit was released, according to The Guardian.

It has gotten to the point that the hashtag "#BoycottHershey" started trending on social media, with many claiming that Hershey's should "make a better product" if they were scared about competing with Cadbury, according to TIME.

With all the backlash, it remains to be seen how Hershey's will bounce back and wade through the mess.