These salty-sweet tornadoes are my absolute favourite Norwegian chocolate! Smash from Nidar are simply corn chips covered in chocolate. On my recent trip to Svalbard, I stumbled upon Fruene cafe which did a roaring trade in its homemade chocolate. I did my bit for the cause and tested out a couple. My favourite? The creamy white chocolate bar complete with polar bear print! There has also a peanut version round and about called ‘Peanøtt Kubbe' although I haven't seen it for a while. The peanut taste is much more overpowering than the rice of the original. However, I'm not sure whether that's because that's the genuine taste, or because I really don't like peanuts very much! Troika These days, Stratos is best known for its commercials featuring the bright blue happy cow you can see on the wrapper. Just look at those udders go…

Freia Melkesjokolade, or Milk Chocolate is a Norwegian classic! This is the most sold chocolate in Norway since the 1960s, and is marketed as en liten bit av Norge (a small piece of Norway). Personally I find it creamy and sweet, and its definitely one of my favorite Norwegian chocolates! By the turn of the century, Freia was the leading Norwegian brand in sweets. Since its inception the factory has been in the Rodeløkka neighborhood in the borough of Grünerløkka in Oslo. I will have caused outrage among my Norwegian readers for not starting with Freia's Kvikk Lunsj, the most iconic chocolate in Norway. It has such status because it's synonymous with the one true love of all Norwegians: the outdoors. Many Norwegians prefer to buy their chocolate in large bar form to share or keep for a while. They're super easy to spot in the supermarkets, and are often found with a discount.Launched in 1969, Freia's Toppris Kubbe is similar to the Toffee Crisp or Lion Bar. This chocolate bar is filled with light toffee and rice, so it's chewy with a slightly crispy texture to it. If you’re traveling to Norway I’d recommend you to try out some delicious Norwegian chocolate. Here are three types from Freia, which are famous for their Melkesjokolade (milk chocolate) and Kvikk Lunsj. I’ve also listed Stratos and Smash from Nidar, one of the largest distributors of sweets to Norwegians. Freia melkesjokolade was created in 1905 by the newly hired manager Johan Throne Holst (1868-1946). When he took over management, he realized that there was a potential market for edible milk chocolate, in addition to the dark chocolate and other minor products Freia were producing at the time. It became a success. However, it was not until the 1920s that regular people had the money to buy chocolate, as it was a luxury product at the time. The chocolate is consistently marketed to create national romantic associations - as the essence of everything that is Norwegian. Most commonly sold in bags, Smash is also available in bar form. That's simply a regular chocolate bar containing bits of Smash, rather than being one big Smash bar! Kvikk Lunsj Can’t wait until you come to Norway? Buy Freia Firkløver Milk Chocolate here (Etsy) Stratos Chocolate bar

The vast majority of chocolate on sale in most Norwegian stores comes from just two companies: Freia and Nidar. Of course, major brands like Mars, Twix and Kinder are also available on the shelves in Norway, but that's not what this article is about.

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Based on the Melkesjokolade Freia produces other candy bars containing nuts, extracts from oranges, raisins etc.: Freia Melkesjokolade ( lit. 'Freia milk chocolate') is milk chocolate from the Norwegian chocolate brand Freia and has been the most sold chocolate in Norway since the 1960s. The chocolate was launched in 1906 after a Swiss recipe, originally called 'Freia Melkechokolade'. In the 1920s it was considered ”Europas bedste spisechokolade” (Europe's best dessert chocolate), and people would often add that it was Norwegian, to underline that it was not imported. [1] It was only after the chocolate again became available after World War II, that the name was changed to "Melkesjokolade" (Milk Chocolate) due to the spelling reform of 1939. Freia Firkløver(four-leaf clover) chocolate is the same as the classic Freia Milk Chocolate, but comes with roasted pieces of hazel nut. It was first sold in 1926, and is a favorite chocolate amongst many Norwegians. In the factories, the cocoa beans are used to produce, among other things, cocoa powder, cocoa mass, cocoa butter and chocolate. The cocoa beans are crushed and the shell is removed from the core.

Of course, it would be wrong to stop just with the big two. Norway has its fair share of entrepreneurs trying to make it in the chocolate world. Up in Bodø, British chef Craig Alibone has made quite the name for himself with his premium chocolate brand and shop. Read this interview with him to find out more. Craig AliboneIt was engineer Jørgen Holmsen who discovered the ‘airy' Aero chocolate bar at a trade fair in Germany, and returned to the Nidar factory to try to create something similar. Teal success bought by Johan Throne Holst (1868–1946) in 1892. He took over management from Larsen in 1898 and led the company to commercial success. [2] Holst realized that there was a potential market for edible milk chocolate, in addition to the dark chocolate and other minor products Freia were producing at the time. Holst built up Freia to be Norway's leading chocolate manufacturer. When the cocoa fruit is ripe and ready for harvesting, it has a color that varies between reddish brown and yellow. The color can be reminiscent of melon. Each fruit contains 30-50 cocoa beans (seeds) which in shape and size look like almonds. Find sources: "Freia Melkesjokolade"– news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR ( November 2023) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message)

It reminds me a little of the rice crispy cakes I used to make as a kid (definitely not as an adult though, no, not, definitely not)Because of the court cases, interest in Kvikk Lunsj has increased outside of Norway too. British newspapers the Guardian and Independent both rated the Norwegian bar higher in blind taste tests. They key? The chocolate-to-wafer ratio is higher in the KL. In 1980 the company merged with a Bergen-based company to create ‘Beregene Nidar' but 17 years later, the Nidar name was restored and all Bergen production moved to the Trondheim facility. Today the company is part of the giant Orkla corporation. Large chocolate bars