Swiss food giant Nestlé says about 12 tons, or 413,793 candy bars, of its KitKat chocolate brand were stolen after leaving its production site in Italy earlier this week for Poland.
The company, based in Vevey, Switzerland, said in a statement on Friday that “the vehicle and its load are still nowhere to be found”.
The shipment of the crunchy bars, made of waffles covered with chocolate, disappeared last week while en route between production and distribution locations. The chocolate bars were to be distributed throughout Europe.
“We’ve always encouraged people to have a break with KitKat,” Nestle said, a callback to the brand’s iconic slogan. “But it seems thieves have taken the message too literally and made a break with more than 12 tons of our chocolate.”
The missing stash includes bars from KitKat’s new Formula One-themed line, launched after the brand became the official F1 chocolate partner last year. The bars are shaped like race cars, while keeping the signature wafer-and-chocolate design.
“Whilst we appreciate the criminals’ exceptional taste, the fact remains that cargo theft is an escalating issue for businesses of all sizes,” the company said. “With more sophisticated schemes being deployed on a regular basis, we have chosen to go public with our own experience in the hope that it raises awareness of an increasingly common criminal trend.”
Nestle warned the stolen bars could surface through unofficial channels. However, it said each product can be tracked using batch codes printed on the packaging.
Consumers, retailers and wholesalers can scan these codes to check if a product is part of the stolen shipment. If flagged, the system will provide instructions to alert the company, which will then pass the information to authorities.
“We are working closely with local authorities and supply chain partners to investigate,” KitKat said. “The good news: there are no concerns for consumer safety, and supply is not affected.”
