FOOD NEWS
The Reason British Kit Kats Taste Better Than America's
By Gregory Lovvorn
In a Kit Kat taste test performed by the International World of Snacks, over 60% of participants preferred the taste of the European candy over its U.S. counterpart. Although the basic construction — chocolate-covered wafer cookies — is the same, American Kit Kats and their U.K. cousins aren’t identical.
British law mandates that milk chocolate must contain a minimum of 25% cocoa solids, but the U.S. FDA only requires American companies to use 10% chocolate liquor. The difference is made up with sugar and fillers, and less pure cocoa means less chocolatey goodness and more sweetness.
The candy bar was created in 1911 by a York confectioner called Rowntree's, and Nestle launched it in the U.K. as the “Chocolate Crisp” in 1935. In 1970, Rowntree's struck a deal with Hershey’s for the manufacturing and distribution rights of Kit Kats in the U.S., and even though Nestle bought out Rowntree's in 1988, it was legally bound to honor Hershey's exclusive rights.