Who won the chocolate battle?

So you know when you are little and your mum does a bit of your homework for you, and no matter how hard you try that little bit of homework it better than all the rest of it? That's essentially what this blog entry is.

My mum, who coincidently is my biggest blog fan, sent me this article.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article6988698.ece

It's about the chocolate battle I have been tirelessly trying to cover - ok fine covering in a lazy devil-may-care way.  Amazingly for me this whole chocolate thing has spiraled out of control and has become a massive story. I can only compare this feeling to those who started out with Barack Obama, before they even knew he would become the most powerful man in the world....I have a feeling there will be a lot of hyperbole in this post, I've been sick the last couple of days and like an over excited kid, dizzy on lemonade, I'm excited to be back writing.

So the article my mum sent me - you should read because it's interesting. However as most of you won't read it, I'll quickly summarize. The author was implying that although input about the Kraft take-over from politicians helps Britain with its sense of national pride, and makes it feel protected from multi-million dollar industries swooping in, it would be unfair to set a precedent and allow politicians control over what are essential business deals. 


Which, in my humble opinion is true. However what it has meant (unbeknownst to the author at the time the article it was written) is that Kraft won. 

11.5 billion dollars they paid, which has made approximately 4,500 people a little bit worried about their jobs. Not to mention Cadbury is no longer. It's that, that has freaked me out most. At first I thought the fact that the same people who make cheese in a jar would be making chocolate worthy of the queen was the most unsettling aspect of the take-over. Now I realize that a future generation will miss out on the British owned Cadbury franchise, a more American future that seems to be taking over the world in general. I think this fight felt very David and Goliath, and although I started with insisting indifference, I'm starting to feel like I just watched a bully win a fight. John Cadbury is probably rolling over in his grave. 

As I have mentioned many a time, we are dealing in chocolate. This is not a weapons trade, or a discussion on the infringement of minority rights. It's not a discussion of how inappropriate the golden globes felt after watching the devastation in Haiti. (which I will get to in my next post) But it is a little bit important. Corporations concentrate on making themselves bigger and more influential, Kraft has become the second largest food company in the world, and it has now taken the second largest confectionery company in the world and added it to its collection of about 40 others. The future of Cadbury as we know it is now pretty uncertain and I plan to keep a close eye on it. Will I be able to forgive Kraft for stealing it? 

A Cadbury chocolate covered Ritz prototype sure wouldn't hurt.