FRANCE IN THE NEWS

Press up in arms over outlawing of milk chocolate
Agence France Presse English Wire, 10/24/97

DATELINE: LONDON

The British press was up in arms Friday over new European measures to outlaw the words "milk chocolate" from packaging on British confectionary. One of Britain's most famous brands, Cadbury's "Milk Tray", would no longer be allowed to carry such a description, and would instead bear the words "Milk chocolate with a high milk content" and "also contains vegetable fats other than cocoa butter".

The changes to the chocolate directive, passed by European MPs in Strasbourg Thursday, were put forward by Belgium and France. They still need to be ratified by the European Commission.

The modification was portrayed in the press Friday as an assault on all that is British and in particular a brand that Britain has stuck with through the years. Coverage reflected similar scare stories in the past about European regulations on sausages -- "the great British banger" -- and bananas. "Hands off our chocolate", was the headline in the Daily Telegraph, in a sentiment echoed across all newspapers.

© 1997 by Agence France Presse. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

 

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