Leonie Wadin, 74, claimed that since the death of her father, Harry Melbourne, she has not bought one.
It was first sold in the UK in 1973 before being taken off the shelves the following year.
In 1994, when the chocolate bar went back on sale, it cost 10p, and it has gained a reputation for being a barometer for inflation in the UK.
This country is finished. pic.twitter.com/ASWIniQFPd
— No Context Brits (@NoContextBrits) February 8, 2025
According to Sky News, it remained at the 10p price until 2007, before it started increasing.
Nowadays, it is sold for around 30-35p per bar, with some rare exceptions being sold for £1 in certain shops.
Explaining her frustration with the price, Leonie, spoke to Sky News’ Money team and said: “Dad was disgusted with how small it is now and how much they charge for it.
“He’d roll over in his grave if he could see it now; he’d be disgusted. It was a penny chocolate.
“Since Dad died, I haven’t bought a Freddo.”
If the price of a Freddo had increased in line with inflation, today a bar would go for about 21p, not 30p or 35p, according to the Bank of England’s inflation calculator.
@uktoday_ The discontinued chocolates that are still available to buy in UK stores. #discontinued #discontinuedsnacks #chocolate #cadbury #nestle #mars ♬ Neon – Ovall
The history of the Freddo bar
The chocolate bar was created by Harry Melbourne, who migrated to Australia from the UK at a young age.
He was only 14 when he cooked up the bar at the confectionery company MacPherson Robertson in 1930.
Leonie explained: “He said children are scared of mice, so why not a frog? Because kids go down to the lake and catch tadpoles.”
By the time Harry was 15, Freddo – named after his “best mate” Fred – was on the shelves in Australia, selling for a penny, Sky News adds.
Cadbury then bought the company in 1967, which saw the Freddo releases internationally in some countries.
Melbourne died at the age of 94 in 2007 and his legacy lives on.
Leonie has five children, 10 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, and they’re all proud of Harry’s story.
She shared: “They’re very proud of their great-granddad, they still buy them [Freddos], they love them.”
And that’s the legacy she wants her family to cherish after her.
“Carry on through every heritage, that’s what I want,” she said.
“The Freddo has to be passed on, Freddo is never going to die.
“It will always be there… I just want it all passed down, so that the frog is always in our lives.”
Recommended reading:
In a statement to Sky News about the price of the Freddo, Mondelez International, which owns Cadbury, said: “Freddo has endured popularity across generations since originally launching in the UK back in 1973, and continues to be a key part of Cadbury’s range today.
“Whilst it’s important to stress that as a manufacturer we do not set the retail prices for products sold in shops, our manufacturing and supply chain costs have increased significantly over the past 50 years, and Freddo has become more expensive to make.
“We have absorbed these increased costs wherever possible, however, on occasion we have made changes to our list prices or multipack sizes to ensure that we can continue to provide consumers with the Freddo that they love, without compromising on the great taste and quality they expect.”