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Over 12 tons of Nestle's 'F1' KitKats stolen in pre-Easter sugary heist in Italy | What we know
The stolen bars were from KitKat’s new Formula One line, a result of KitKat’s becoming the official F1 chocolate bar last year.
Thieves in Italy pulled off a sugary heist just ahead of Easter celebrations when they stole a large shipment of KitKat bars while in transit to distributors.
The major candy crime right before the Easter holiday could cause shortages for customers across Europe, a claim Nestle, the Swiss parent company of the KitKat brand, has denied.
Nestle confirmed the theft of a huge shipment, jokingly stating that the thieves took the KitKat brand's marketing slogan “take a break” quite literally.
“We’ve always encouraged people to have a break with KitKat. But it seems thieves have taken the message too literally and made a break with more than 12 tons of our chocolate,” Nestlé said in a statement.
The company told the Guardian that it is investigating the theft with local authorities and supply chain partners.
The stolen bars were from KiKat’s new Formula One line, a result of KitKat’s becoming the official F1 chocolate bar last year, the Athletic reported. The candy bars were moulded into race car shapes, still featuring KitKat’s iconic chocolate-covered wafers.
How thieves pulled off the KitKat heist right before Easter
According to a report by news agency AFP, the truck carrying 413,793 units of Kitkat’s new F1 chocolate range, about 12 tons of chocolate bars, was driving through Europe when the thieves pulled off the heist on March 26.
They stole the truck after it left a factory in central Italy and was en route to Poland, Nestlé revealed. The chocolate bars were to be distributed throughout Europe.
A Nestlé spokesperson told The Athletic that the vehicle and the carried-off chocolate have not been located, adding that no one was hurt during the heist. The company has also warned that the stolen KitKat bars could end up in unofficial markets.
KitKat said that, as a result, consumers, retailers, and wholesalers would be able to identify whether a product is part of the stolen shipment by scanning the on-pack batch numbers. If a match is found, the scanner will be given clear instructions on how to alert the company, which will then share the evidence appropriately.
“Whilst we appreciate the criminals’ exceptional taste, the fact remains that cargo theft is an escalating issue for businesses of all sizes," KitKat said in a statement.
“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,” the statement added.
Downplaying shortage fears just before the Easter holiday, Kitkat said in a separate X statement on Sunday that it was working closely with local authorities and supply chain partners to investigate.
“The good news: there are no concerns for consumer safety, and supply is not affected,” the company said.
