I Just Learned What The Toblerone Logo Actually Shows, And It's Not Just A Mountain

My whole life has been a lie.
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Justin Sullivan via Getty Images

We’ve written before at HuffPost UK about how Twix’s name is actually a clever portmanteau of twin sticks. 

And now, another cocoa-based revelation; the branding on Toblerone boxes (prisms?) doesn’t just show a mountain. 

Those of us who fantasise about passing through an airport duty-free store to buy a metric tonne of the almond-filled delight are probably already familiar with its gold hue and siren-red font. 

But if you’re anything like me, you might have missed a pretty remarkable addition to its mountain motif that used to be in its corner.


Which is? 

Well, was. The original mountain was ordered to be removed from Toblerone bars last year ― that’s because it showed the Swiss Matterhorn peak that reflected the company’s original home in Berne. The bar had been produced there since 1908. 

But Swiss law meant that when the company moved a significant chunk of its production away from Berne, it had to lose the Swiss logo, too. 

However, the original logo (which many of us know and love) showed the famous Alpine mountain peak with a secret surprise in the middle ― if you look closely, you can see the image of a bear on the left-hand side. 

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Ben Gabbe / Stringer

Why a bear?

We’ve mentioned before about how the bar was traditionally made in Berne. And the city’s heraldic animal is a bear ― hence its appearance on the original, iconic packaging. 

In fact, legend has it that the city got its name from a bear. However, research suggests its name might have come from the Celtic word ‘Berna,’ meaning cleft or ravine.

Nonetheless, the animal is still strongly associated with the city ― and will be missing on Toblerone’s new logo, which promises a “modernised and streamlined mountain logo that aligns with the geometric and triangular aesthetic.” 

Between this and the Lyle’s Golden Syrup changes ― what’s going on in the world of slightly chaotic food logo animals recently?!