Iconic chocolate Toblerone to change packing design under new Swiss laws

The over-century-old Swiss pyramid-shaped chocolate Toblerone will change its packing to remove the Matterhorn mountain peak in accordance with the alpine European country's laws, media reports said on Sunday.

The image of the jagged mountain peak, used on the chocolate's packaging since 1970, will have to change as some of Toblerone's production was moved outside Switzerland, and a 2017 Swiss law states that national symbols cannot be allowed to promote milk-based products that are not made exclusively in the country, the BBC reported.

The chocolate will undergo a labelling revamp that will replace the Matterhorn with a more generic Alpine summit and include its founder's signature, as per US firm Mondelez which owns the brand.

In a statement to the BBC, Mondelez said it was moving some production outside of the country to "respond to increased demand worldwide and to grow our Toblerone brand for the future".

It said its new packaging would include a "distinctive new Toblerone typeface and logo that draw further inspiration from the Toblerone archives and the inclusion of our founder, Tobler's, signature".

The chocolate made from Swiss milk with honey and almond nougat, first went on sale in 1908 in Bern. Before 1970 when the Matterhorn's jagged silhouette was used, the chocolate pack had featured the Bernese bear and eagle, according to the Toblerone website.