The Last Bite: Nestlé Animal Bar Faces Extinction

After 60 years of production, Nestlé have decided to call time on yet another one of our childhood favourites, Animal Bar, leaving us with no time to recover from the news about the demise of Caramac.

Disgruntled fans of the iconic children's chocolate bar have been flocking to social media to air their views about its extinction. Bet Lynch's Fag wrote on X "first they came for the Caramac, now they've come for the animal bar - is nothing sacred? Evil evil Nestle". 

Adam Hines tweeted "First Caramac and now Animal Bar @Nestle are you serious? two of the best ever bars. Carry on with these poor choices and your entire company will be gone before you know it." 

Although some reactions are a little extreme, there's no doubt that just hearing anyone mention Nestlé's Animal Bar immediately takes many of us on a journey down memory lane. The bar's playful packaging adorned with charming illustrations of beloved animals adds a touch of whimsy, sparking a sense of nostalgia.

The reason given for its demise is  "low performance of the product and a steady decline in its sales over the past few years", according to a Nestlé spokesperson.

This video features a review of Animal Bar by Mark Daws.

History

The Animal bar was launched in 1963 by Nestlé, and each bar included a fun game on the inside of each wrapper, and also featured five different animals moulded onto the top during the 60s and 70s. Each animal was given a different name, such as Leo Lion, Ron Rhino and Bertha Bear.

The number of animals moulded on to the top of each bar was eventually reduced to just two, possibly to make the manufacturing process more cost-effective.

Both the price and weight of Animal Bar was always considerably lower compared to adult bars. The price of the bar in the 1960s was around 4D, and retailed at just 25p for a 19g bar in 2023. A larger 76g bar was also available in some stores.

Wrappers

There have been numerous wrapper designs over the years, and in the 1960s, each wrapper was printed in a different colour, each one featuring a different wild animal illustration with a friendly, cartoon-like appearance. 

A total of 11 animal species have featured on the wrappers, and these are antelope, bear, deer, dog, iguana, leopard, lion, monkey, parrot, rhino and zebra.  

A major change to the wrapper design was made in the 1970s, which now featured multiple wild animals on the front, and a fatter, orange logo which was the general trend in the 70s.

1970s Animal Bar wrapper

Looking to the future

So, with two popular Nestlé chocolate bars from our childhood being discontinued in November 2023, it's not been the best of months in the world of confectionary. In an ever-changing, more completive world in which there are now more chocolate bar varieties than ever before, I guess, it's inevitable that more old favourites from the past will be facing the axe at some point over the coming years.

So, go grab yourself an animal bar or two (while you can) and savour its delights once more, before it disappears forever.  

You may also like our article about Nestlé Lion Bar