Caramello Koala

Caramello Koalas are Australian confectionery made by the Cadbury Company. They consist of a koala (named 'George' in certain advertising material) shaped layer of chocolate, a thick layer of caramel, then another layer of chocolate similar to that of a Freddo Frog.

The chocolate bar is sold in two sizes: the more common 20 gram size and the "Giant" 40 gram size, usually sold as a fundraiser. 40 million Caramello Koalas are sold in Australia each year, making the product the second most popular in the Australian children's confectionery market, after the Freddo Frog. ['Caramello Koala gets new look', "Packaging", 30 November 1999.]

Cross-over products are occasionally made available featuring the Caramello character, including Cadbury Caramello Koala Choc Caramel flavoured milk in 2003 and Caramello Koala Sundae ice-cream in 1997. They are also sold in South Africa under name "Caramello Bear", where they are marketed with the Caramello Bear admitting: "Caramel? That's a weakness!"

A 20g Caramello Koala contains 415kJ of energy and 5.5g of fat.

Caramello Koala was introduced in Australia in 1966. It was reputedly the first mass marketed confection to be modelled on Australian fauna. Television advertisements for the chocolate in Australia featured Caramello and his cartoon friends sailing down a river to a modified version of Donovan's "Mellow Yellow". Caramello's packaging and imagery was updated in 2000, after market research revealed the character was seen as daggy, one-dimensional and not sufficiently 'animated'. ['Caramello Koala gets new look', "Packaging", 30 November 1999.]

In 2003, then Australian Labor Party MP, Mark Latham, was labelled a 'Caramello Koala' by Liberal MP Christopher Pyne, for allegedly being 'soft in the centre'. [Ramsay, A. ' If Labor's nut has gone soft inside, try the blancmange', " [http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/06/06/1054700384589.html The Sydney Morning Herald] ", 7 June 2003.]

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