Flake (chocolate bar) facts for kids
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| Type | Confectionery |
|---|---|
| Owner | Cadbury |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Introduced | 1920 |
| Related brands | List of Cadbury products |
| Markets | United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand |
Flake is a popular British chocolate bar. It is made by the company Cadbury, which is now part of Mondelez International. Flake bars are special because they are made of very thin, folded layers of milk chocolate.
This chocolate bar has a unique texture. It is very crumbly and soft. When it gets warm, it usually just softens instead of melting completely. However, if you put it in a special chocolate melting machine, it will melt.
Contents
History of Flake Chocolate
How Flake Was Discovered
The first Flake bar was created in 1920. It was discovered by accident by a Cadbury employee named Ralph Thompson. He worked at the Bournville factory in the United Kingdom. Ralph noticed that thin streams of extra chocolate were falling from the molds. These streams cooled down and formed into flaky ripples. This gave him the idea for the Flake bar.
Flake and Ice Cream
By 1930, Cadbury started selling shorter Flake bars. These were made especially for topping vanilla soft-serve ice cream cones. These are famously known as "99 Flakes." Ice cream sellers would put them into the soft ice cream. Flake bars were first sold in the United Kingdom. Later, they became popular in Ireland, Australia, South Africa, and other countries.
Where Flake Is Made Today
Flake bars are no longer made at the original Bournville factory. Today, they are produced in Dublin, Ireland. They are also made in 10th of Ramadan, Egypt.
Recent Flake Shortages
In 2021 and again in 2022, Mondelez announced that there were not enough Flake bars available in the UK and Ireland. In 2021, this was because many people wanted to buy them due to good weather. In 2022, Mondelez said the shortages were due to problems with the "supply chain" around the world. This means there were difficulties getting all the ingredients and materials needed to make and deliver the chocolate.
How Flake Is Made
Cadbury keeps the exact way they make Flake bars a secret. However, a food scientist from Australia, Ann Reardon, has done experiments. She showed that you can make something similar by using a process called "seizing chocolate." This happens when chocolate becomes thick and clumpy, often from getting wet.
Different Kinds of Flake
Flake Bar Varieties
Over the years, many different types of Flake bars have been made. Here are some of them:
- Dark Chocolate Flakes:
- Plain Flake: This was a mix of plain and milk chocolate.
- Flake Noir: A Flake bar made with dark chocolate.
- Flake Dark: A dark chocolate Flake covered in more dark chocolate. This came out in 2006.
- Flake Snow: (also called Snowflake until 2003) This was a white chocolate Flake bar. It was dipped in milk chocolate. It was launched in 1999 but stopped being made in 2000.
- Flake Dipped: This was a milk chocolate Flake dipped in milk chocolate. It looked like a bigger version of the Twirl bar. It was also known as Flake Luxury and launched in 2003.
- Flake Praline: A milk chocolate Flake with praline inside. It was launched in 2004.
- Flake Allure: A milk chocolate Flake that was half covered in a rich truffle and milk chocolate. This was a special limited edition in 2011.
- Orange Flake: A Flake with orange flavour. This is available in South Africa.
- Flake Mint: A Flake with a pale green mint-flavoured centre. In South Africa, it is a mint-flavoured milk chocolate Flake with no added colour. Flake Mint was a special edition in Australia in late 2016.
- Flake Caramilk: A Flake with Caramilk flavour. Caramilk is a type of caramelised white chocolate. This was introduced in Australia in 2021.
Other Flake Products
Besides the bars, Flake is used in other treats:
- 99 Flake: A short Flake bar, usually half the length of a regular one. It is often used as a topping for ice cream.
- Flake McFlurry: A dessert from McDonald's with crushed Flake pieces and chocolate. There was also a raspberry version.
- Cadbury Twin Pot Flake: A dessert with two sections, one with Flake.
- Flake Bites: Small, bite-sized pieces of Flake.
- Flake Minis: Smaller versions of the Flake bar.
- Flake Moments: Another small, bite-sized Flake treat.
Flake Advertisements
Flake became well-known for its relaxing advertisements. In the UK, these ads often showed people, usually women, enjoying a Flake while taking a break.
The "Flake Girl" became a famous symbol. She represented the idea of enjoying a special, quiet moment. The ads focused on her allowing herself a small, enjoyable treat. The advertising with a girl in a field was created by Barry Myers.
The famous Flake song was written by UK jingle writer Ronnie Bond. He also wrote other well-known jingles for different food products.
In 1999, a special advertisement was released. It was a tribute to the Flake Girls from past decades. It showed clips from old ads, starting from 1959. These clips showed different women relaxing and enjoying their Flake bars in various settings. For example, one clip from 1965 showed a girl in a rowing boat. Another from 1973 showed an artist in a field of poppies. A 1991 ad showed a woman relaxing in a bathtub. The tribute ended with the 1999 ad, showing a woman in Paris enjoying a Flake with ice cream.
The "Flake Girl" ads were stopped in 2004 after 40 years. However, in 2005, many people in the UK still remembered her. So, the ads were brought back in 2007. The new advertisement featured Australian model Alyssa Sutherland. She was shown eating a Flake in a convertible car during a rain shower.
In 2008, UK singer Joss Stone became the new "Flake Girl." She was the first person who was not a professional model to promote the product. In her television advertisement, she broke off a small piece of Flake. She then ate it and brushed crumbs off her clothes while softly singing the Flake theme song.
On June 8, 2010, a new advertisement was shown. It featured a woman floating on a black background. This ad was still part of "The Flake girl" series. However, it did not have any text or slogans, only the image of the bar at the end. The familiar music jingle was replaced by a calm piano piece.
See also
