Premium chocolate brand Ritter Sport has struck an agreement with UK Tesco and Asda stores for its Coconut, and Butter Biscuit bars to join the retailers’ key ‘meal deal’ options, writes Neill Barston.

The German-founded brand has been active in the British market for more than a decade, having built up a strong presence through a series of engagements with consumers across the UK.

As previously reported by Confectionery Production, this recently included a tour of Britain marking its ten years in the region for the business – which has more than a century of history in its founding country.

For its latest retail link-up, Ritter’s 100g square format bars will be in a further 643 Tesco and Asda Express stores from this month, along with an additional total of 453 Tesco main stores, and 190 Asda Express outlets from next month.

The listings give shoppers a different choice from the traditional single-serve chocolate formats that dominate the fixture, while giving retailers an opportunity to introduce new flavours, a larger format and a quality chocolate proposition into a high-frequency food-to-go occasion.

As the company noted, the move  comes as shoppers increasingly look to maximise what they get from their meal deal, with the current ‘meal deal maxxing’ trend turning the lunchtime fixture into a space for seeking out products that deliver more for the fixed price.

Josephine Skinner, Senior Brand Manager, Ritter Sport UK & Ireland, commented on the deal.

She said: ““Meal deals are a huge everyday shopping occasion, but chocolate choice has traditionally been dominated by smaller formats. We’re bringing something different; a full 100g block of genuinely high-quality chocolate as part of the deal.

“Our biggest opportunity is getting more people to try Ritter Sport. We know that once shoppers experience the quality and our distinctive flavour combinations, they come back. Putting Coconut, Butter Biscuit and Cornflakes into another 643 meal deal fixtures gives even more shoppers an easy way to discover us,” adding that the agreement with the retail stores was particularly timely, as consumers are seek to gain extra value for their money with their lunchtime eating options.